Originally Posted by *Laura*:
“Very clever editing by the Beeb has ensured that we see the nicer side of James (and Ola for that matter). Which isn't necessarily a bad thing but, I don't think he's rehabilitated at all. We caught a glimpse of the competitive James when he was teaching the class in SYTYCD, which again isn't bad. However, if we are shown another "rant" like the one against JS then his new found popularity would dip again.”
But to be fair, it was the Beeb's editing that contributed significantly to him being unpopular in the first place. The business with Georgina was presented in a very one sided way - no, he shouldn't have had such a short fuse but it sounds like her behaviour would have provoked even the most patient of pro. Maybe the BBC are just trying to redress the balance, albeit rather late in the day.
What I don't understand is how people (not Laura - I mean elsewhere on the forum) refuse to consider that maybe the guy has just matured since his first series - any apparent change of behaviour is branded 'hypocrisy'. It seems to cause some people a headache to acknowledge that people do change and develop. Let's face it, if he came on ITT and said 'Yes, I was mean to Georgina but I've calmed down since then and I'm sorry' they would only accuse him of being contrived and insincere.
Personally I've liked him since he was with Gabby. All his partners since then have sung his praises, he seems to get on well with the other pros, and has even helped out the male celebs (not just Chris). Forum members who've met him also say he's lovely. To me he comes across as someone who's passionate about dancing and won't tolerate people who are messing about in class (which is what I think came across in SYTYCD, more than competitiveness), but who outside of that is good humoured and generous. I'm glad he's had a chance to show off the positive sides on ITT this year, but I hope he doesn't get over-exposed as that never does anyone any good.