Erin looked decent enough when she danced with Ian in one of the pro Latin dances towards the end of the series.

I know, hence why I said when she's dancing with Anton in pro Latin it looks awkward...

I don't think Anton's Latin being sub-standard is really a reason to not bring him back. It's a reason not to give him partners with potential to win, or who seem like they might (although Laila made 4th so they must have been doing something right) but not every pro has to be in it to win it every series, especially with 16 of them. Someone has to get the older women and the confidence-and-talent challenged. They're not going to go away, and if Anton doesn't get them, then someone who can choreograph Latin is going to have to guide them.

Personally I definitely wouldn't get rid of any of the women off my own bat if I were deciding (unless there was a definite cut to 14, and even then I'd wait to make sure Erin/Katia weren't dropping out of their own accord). There's been enough female turnover in recent years (on both sides of the judges bench) as it is - the show needs a bit of continuity on that front.

There are some of the men I think have probably run their courses (Brendan and Anton), more for the fact that we've seen pretty much every permutation of what they bring to the show, rather than their "talent" which, on a show that was never 100% and is increasingly less about pure dancing ability, is increasingly irrelevant anyway. And even then, they're still both pretty popular from what I can tell.

I agree with that. It's actually good to have some reserve pros to give the plodders to... it would be nice if they followed through on that, and didn't give people like Craig and Richard to pros like Flavia and Lilia, who are actually good at choreographing and performing with strong celebs.

Laila would probably have been better off with someone like Darren, Vincent, Brian or Matt (can't remember off hand how tall she is)... she might still have come fourth, but it might have been in a less embarassing way. That Jive...

Dont get me started on That Jive.....
I think she was too tall for Darren and Vincent .... but Brian and Matt would have been ok....

I don't think coming fourth was any great shakes this year - lets face the only people who really went before their time were Zoe and possibly Martina. They just weren't a great bunch dancing wise.

Have to agree. And Laila would never have made fourth if Jade had still been in the competition.

It would be a crime to drop Darren & Lillia. Not only are they past champions but they know exactly how to choreograph for their celebrities. They are at the heart of Strictly Come Dancing.
Kristina and Flavia have lost their judgment... Kristina lost her objectivity with Joe, and I am convinced Flavia was teaching Craig wrong. His "rise and fall" in ballroom dances a case in point.

I don't believe for a second that any of the pros could have made Craig or Joe into good dancers!

Flavia's choreography is a bit marmite- it can be very clever, or a bit too quirky. But some of her routines for Matt were fab, and it would be nice to see her with another really good celeb this year.

Not fond of Kristina's choreography though, either for celebs or the group pro numbers. It's a bit too focussed on her and her crotch! Also thought she wasn't great with Mark on tour so I'm not keen on seeing her with a stronger celeb this year. But on the fairness side, there's no denying it's her turn!

We need a lot of really good male celebs this year I think!

If you've ever been taught by Flavia in a workshop then it's clear she has not lost her judgement at all, she knows how to teach! (And yes, I have seen her teach ballroom - the rise and fall had to be done by Craig, Flavia couldn't control in on the live show!) Craig was deluded before the show even started, and none of the pros could have taught him how to dance properly when he was convinced he already knew....I think it was support for Flavia and what she had to put up with that got them as far as they did. She deserves another good celeb - she's only ever had one, and she was extremely impressive that year. She's at the top of the queue for a good partner this year.

Kristina I've never been a fan of - she's yet to choreograph a routine for her celeb that I've liked, and in my opinion Mark completely out-danced her on tour. But she does deserve a chance with a good celeb, then maybe we'll see what she's actually capable of (and if she did actually do the Sweet Charity group number then she clearly can choreograph, she just needs to translate that to a single pro/celeb routine!)

Then again Darren wasn't impressive on tour either, although Lilia most definitely was! Natalie danced far better when she danced with Vincent, and the routines were practically the same (in fact did they change the quickstep at all?). But I don't think the BBC will drop Darren and Lilia, although if they don't get better celebs this year I wouldn't be surprised if they quit - they have enough other projects to keep them busy!

I think Anton and Erin will go, and maybe Katya and Brendan. I'm not sure about Darren and Lilia, I really don't want them to go because I've always loved Lilia from when she joined, I love Darren too. I think they are both great at choreography for their parteners.

I don't think you can blame Natalie's dancing on Darren. I don't think she danced that well with Vincent at all but their personalites got them through.

Maybe the fact she's pregnant had a part to play in her tour dancing too.

I wouldn't say she was any further at the front than Lilia, Kristina, or Aliona. The producers need to get a group of seriously talented male celebs this year!

It's difficult isn't it? You can never tell what another pro would have done with the same partner. However in my view, Lilia tends to bring out the best in her partners no matter what their standard, although I think Richard D was a bit too much of a lost cause even for Lilia.

I'm not absolutely convinced about Flavia. I have absolutely no doubts about as to whether she teaches correctly. There is no way that she would incorrectly teach 'rise and fall'. However, as much as I like her, she is quite quiet and therefore might have problems extracting the best from her partners.

I'm not a big Kristina fan or that keen on Aliona and so wouldn't miss them if they did not come back.

I agree. Lilia and Flavia are deserving of a good partner. Lilia maybe more so, because Dom, Don and Richard were clearly never going to win. Craig is young enough to have made the producers think he had a shot.

Not sure on that front- if they'd met him once I'd be willing to bet they knew he was never going to win (I wasn't a big fan of his personality ). Also he's surely not that much younger than Richard?

To me though Lilia and Flavia are about neck and neck in who deserves a top celeb next year- both on past runs and teaching ability. Lilia's choreography and personality are stronger in my opinion, but that is personal opinion.

I think it makes sense to use some combination of previous runs and strength in terms of teaching, choreography etc. Otherwise if you just go on previous performance, you risk giving good celebs to the pros who just aren't that good at getting the best out of the celeb, and are getting bad results for that reason.

I don't know, I think Craig stood a chance at the start. There's 6 years between them.

I agree about Lilia completely, though I do like Flavia a lot. It's like her personality isn't for TV.

I suppose he stood a slightly better chance at the start than Richard did, but I never thought he had a shot of winning. Although frankly I thought the same about Chris for most of the series, so what do I know?

I like that Flavia is a bit quieter- surely preferably to someone like Anton who never lets a word in edgewise from anyone else! I don't think she would ever have a Chris/Ola, Goughie/Lilia style partnership, but she adds to her partnerships in a different way. And she is beautiful to watch as well. She is one of a handful of pros that I think it's a shame for the show if they are eliminated early*- some for dancing, some for personality and dancing combined... none for personality only! I think it's wrong to have 'personalities' who don't have the right skills for the show.


*except for series seven, when losing Flavia was almost completely compensated for by losing Mr. Delusional at the same time.

I love Flavia, and I think with the right partner her personality actually shines. Like with Matt DA. And she's mesmerising to watch.

Lilia is just my fave. End of story.

Some people struggle to dance at any age, but I think it's fair to say that the producers wouldn't have had any reason to assume he didn't have a chance.

(I think that the SCD producers perpetuate this myth that older contestants suddenly lose all dancing aptitude by the way they select the older celebs. Instead of going for those who appear to be naturally graceful like Cherie Lunghi, they tend to select the more lumpy ungainly older celebs, presumably to add a comedy element. There are lots of older public figures who already ballroom dance - so there should be some who can learn)

I agree, there is no way a dancer of Flavias talent would teach somebody the wrong steps/technique ! I think the only problem with Craig's dancing was his lack of ability and talent !
I don't agree she is top of the queue for the ringer this year though as like others have said there are at least two other pro girls who deserve a decent chance. Lets hope the bbc ship in some decent male celebs this year !

On the subject of Nat and Darren on the tour, I think we now know why she looked knackered most of the time ! Also bless Darren having to lift her ! (which is something vincent chickened out of during the series )

BENNETT DOMINATION 2010 !

I don't think Darren danced well either though - he and Lilia were good in the pro dances, but he wasn't impressive dancing with Natalie, he looked just as laboured in the quickstep as she did. Of course he's not going to end up dancing as well as always did with Jill, she's a far superior dancer, but I thought he was just as below-par as Natalie during their performances. He wasn't the only pro dancer who was a bit off though, I wasn't impressed by Kristina either, and even Ola, one of my favourite pros, had an off-day in the Charleston (although she was fabulous in the Rumba), plus Aliona never really stood a chance of being impressive when she and Ricky were quite clearly playing the fools.

It does take the right partner I think to bring out Flavia's personality (and you could say that about all the pros I think, I don't think for a second we saw the true Aliona when she was dancing with Rav), but series 5 showed that was definitely possible, and she was fantastic that year especially

Lilia, Flavia and Kristina definitely need good partners, if they can't find 4 good males it will be Aliona who loses out I think...if they can find 6 (unlikely I know) then give one to Katya too, she did well this year with Phil and it would nice if she got quite far again

I don't know much about dance but in the quickstep, is it possible to be light footed and quick if your partner is laboured? Genuine question.

Yeah Flavia came across brilliantly in Series 5, just like Lilia in Series 3 & 4.

No it isn't. Well lightfooted maybe but you will be hampered to some extent. There are some things you should always sustain no matter who your partner is (e.g. posture) but if your partner cannot move fast or cover a lot of ground then you can't unless you physically force them (which some pros have done and is very poor form on the dance floor - impolite).

Yeah and I'm the partner who is usually doing the hampering in my private dance lessons and so I should know.

I think it is easier to sustain your normal standard of dancing in the latin. Partner performance shouldn't really affect your own there, except perhaps when in hold.

Darren dances a lovely Quickstep with Lilia. I think it's fair to say if he didn't look his best with Natalie, that was down to having to keep to her level.