Apparently they are only doing four dances each - there isn't a Judges Choice this year, thank goodness.

Chris & Ola are doing:

Foxtrot
Charleston
Lindyhop
Showdance

Anyone know what Ricky & Natalie are doing?

Apparently both couples are doing the Lindyhop side by side (accordng to Chris on Breakfast tv this morning)

I know sounds like a car crash to happen doesn't it. I still don't know what Lindyhop is by the way.

this is Lindy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uBwm3FjdP0

I loved Chris' Charleston and I'm looking forward to seeing their Foxtrot again. Good choices IMO.
I'm guessing Ricky will do the Quickstep and maybe the cha cha or paso.


That's what I was thinking. You can just see one couple doing a lift and the other couple crashing into them

I'm glad they're not doing the judges' choice. It's always seemed a bit pointless to me. They argued that it was a chance to compare the two but bearing in mind they both did completely different dances (e.g. Matt the quickstep and Mark the samba), it really wasn't. Plus there was a tendency to mark them the exact same.

Thank you

Interesting, don't know if I like it though.

This could backfire on Chris

Charleston is NOT Latin so shouldn't have been an option

Charleston, Lindyhop AND Showdance based on similar.... Eeeeek....

Edit : R&R also shouldn't be an option to choose for Ricky as either ballroom or latin, as it's neither.
Last edited by Passoa : 14-12-2009 at 10:17

That was a very slinky and cool lindyhop, it's the first one i've ever liked. Thanks for the link.

Usually they are really clunky, a lot of flat footed hoping about and not much else. But that one had a bit of style.

Slinky is the perfect word! I loved that. Lindy meets Cabaret!

Chris did say on Breakfast that he was doing the Charleston 'if I'm allowed' so it isn't definate.

Chris did say on BBC Breakfast this morning that they were waiting to find out if they were going to be allowed to do this dance, so they may actually be forced to do a proper latin dance.

Personally I would have thought if they were going to do the charleston it would need to be swapped for a tradditional ballroom rather than the latin. Although I don't actually think they should be allowed to do it all, seems out of the spirit of the competition.

Er - why?!?

It would actually out of spirit of the competition if Chris and Ola weren't allowed to do the Charleston.

Or are some posters just scared that it'll steal the show, like it did last time?

I bet the Charleston makes an appearance. So far all the changes have been in Chris's favour, plus I bet the BBC are worried that there'll be a backlash on the forums if Chris isn't allowed to do his most crowd-pleasing dance of the series.

I love the idea of having Lindyhop in as well, mind you, but I take Passoa's point about it starting to get tedious if Chris does three dances that could be construed as similar...

This is a tad weird. The Charleston has never been performed before, so there cannot be any rules as to whether couples are allowed to perform it in the final or not.

As such, the BBC cannot fix the rules (because there aren't any). Only if the Charleston had been performed last year, and the contestants would not have been allowed to perform it, would it be a fix if the BBC changed it now.

Some people are now getting really paranoid. Anyway, if Ricky is the better dancer, and can entertain the public, I'm sure he has nothing to fear from Chris' charleston. At the end of the day, him and Natalie could decide to do the RnR if they wanted to.

I'm a team Cola fan, I LOVED their Charleston (highlight of the series), but I don't think they should do it in the final because:
1. It should be 1 ballroom, 1 latin
2. Ricky never got to do the Charleston (and his might have been even better)
3. No-one has been allowed to do the AT in the final before
4. He'd be better off doing a conventional ballroom and Latin, and then doing a Charleston based show dance. Otherwise, with the Lindyhop as well, it's going to get a bit too samey.

I agree, Charleston's derived from the Quickstep so it would have to be his ballroom dance and not his latin.

Not quite made up my mind on if he should be allowed to dance, probably not fair to let him do it imo.

Sorry but I disagree but not because I'm not worried that it will steal the show, I really enjoyed their charleston. I'd just personally prefer it if both couples did a tradditional ballroom and latin.

I think it would be out of the spirit because they spend most of the time practising both disciplines and to not see both in the final from both finalists would feel wrong to me.

There is also the matter that a one of the competitors in the final would be dancing a dance that the other competitor had not had the chance to dance during the course of the series.

I'd feel exactly the same if it was Ricky asking to do his rock and roll in the final.

I like their style - slidey, she dances like POPeye's Olive Oyl.

Thought this was a great version from them with a bit more of the aerial Lindy Hop.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOVx1...eature=related

Actually good point, all the Charleston did well, the only two dancers who had rock n roll ended up in the dance off. Obviously not a crowd pleasing dance.

The Charleston is a bit of a novelty in Strictly and since Ricky didn't get a chance to dance it I think it'd be fairer to just stick to classic latin/ballroom and the new dance lindyhop.

I have to agree with Fredless Ginger and I'd feel the same way if everyone was raving about Ricky's RNR. Neither the charleston nor the RNR should be in the final considering Ricky never got to dance the charleston and Chris never got to do the RNR.
If the charleston were included, it would surely replace a ballroom not a latin dance? If even the AT can't be performed in the final, and that's a dance both finalists would have attempted, then it doesn't seem right to include the RNR or the charleston. If they did then it would make sense that the RNR takes place of the latin dance and the charleston takes place of the ballroom dance.

I really hope Chirs and Ola are allowed to do the Charleston!

If not then I hope they do a Salsa.

You cant really assume previous years rules about Ballroom and Latin after the BBC changed the dances this year to include other categories of dance.

The AT has always been in the semifinal and I dont think there has been a dance of any type allowed to be done in both the semifinal and final?

The BBC should have made it clear what category dances were in and what dances were allowed in the final. If the Charleston isn't allowed, or is classified as ballroom, that disadvantages Chris. It doesn't look like a ballroom dance to me - I think its more like a Jive.

They should have made it clearer at the beginning I agree.

Rock n Roll is latin as it's derived from Jive and Charleston is ballroom as it's derived from the Quickstep.

But neither are classic latin or ballroom so I suppose it could be open to interpretation?! Really though, I think it's bending the rules to call a Charleston a latin.

But it's always assumed dancers will either dance a ballroom or a latin so you could argue that bringing in the charleston and the RNR fits the same pattern. Add to that the addition of the lindy hop which has elements of charleston so you could also argue that it actually is in Chris's favour not Ricky's.

Producers made it even harder by not allowing them to try each dance. Simpler solution is to disqualify both RNR and Charleston. There's nothing stopping him from doing it as his showdance surely? I don't think people would complain about that. It would benefit him as it takes the pressure off of learning a completely new showdance.

Well it isn't definitely an option yet. He said they were waiting to see if they could do it so the BBC could just say no just easily as people are thinking they are going to say yes.
I love their Charleston but at the same time, I'd like a showdance based on it with the samba for latin. But I'll wait to hear the official confirmation first before I decide if it's a good or bad thing.