She definitely was, and remains a very lovely lady. I think she suffered under the same misjudgment from people as Gary. Competent skater, but dull (not IMO obviously)

Last year the quality of the final (IMO) was fantastic (for different reasons). Although I liked the tension between Chris and Suzanne as well. I'm not sure this year will live up to it all.

I really liked Jess as well and I was supporting her in series 4 (I liked all 3 finalists though). I think though she was similar to Gary in the sense that she had a shy personality and had trouble projecting out from her performances at first, but unlike Gary she managed to overcome it eventually, her Venus routine being the best example. Her partnership with Pavel was lovely too.

Edit: Ooh snap lach doch mal (re the comparison with Gary)

I obviously agree. They could be sister and brother, couldn't they.

BTW I love your username. You are not related to Hammy by any chance (who has turned into a combathamster), and who will go beserk if Gary wins on Sunday.

Stefan and Claire were robbed imo.

Mama JB mucked up big time in his skate off and Stefan rose to the occasion. I still remember John's exit as one of the biggest DOI shocks, though I must confess I wasn't impressed with his bad grace when he was voted out.

There is no relation as far as I know (though hamsters come from big families so we may be long lost cousins) but I have been enjoying his antics and I will likely react the same way as him if Gary wins.

That proves it, you must be related. I'm really expecting Hammy to wield a sword and a chainsaw on Sunday. Poor JfW, I wonder if he will have to spend a few days in hospital if Hammy doesn't get his way (I'm a great Hammy fan).

I hope your nearest and dearest are prepared for your antics?.

Emily should of won this series

I think the public have got it right with the winner pretty much every year. I do admit I would have preferred Stefan to have won the first series though, other than that I agree with all the other series, Clare and Chris were great runners up though and Ray deserved it last year.
I don't agree with the whole, ahead most weeks so should win agrument necessarily. In my view doi is like a race, each week is a lap and you have got to keep yourself in contention and within striking distance, a couple of frontrunners usually break away and when the bell goes for the final its whoever crosses the finish line first. Suzanne sat on chris's shoulder, she never let him get away and she lead several times. On the last lap it was a great fight but she had an extra gear that he didnt and she overtook him and deservedly won. Ray was too far ahead last year for anyone to catch him, he went out like rocket from the start. I don't think anyone will catch Hayley this year either to be honest, though I would like Keiron to.

Well we've just had the whole downstairs of the house renovated so I'll probably have to avoid wielding any dangerous objects. I reserve the right to have a tantrum though.

I suppose the one good thing that would come from Gary winning would be hammy's reaction making for exciting reading...

I know this is childish but i think i might die laughing at the reaction on here and elsewhere if Gary wins!!

Chris was robbed, he was consistently brilliant all series

Series 3, Chris was absolutely robbed. Far a superior skater to Suzanne. To this day, I still don't get what appeals.

But it's not just about voting for the most accomplished skater - otherwise we'd just rely on the judge's scores and scrap the public vote.

The audience also take into account factors such as improvement and whose partnership they've warmed to.

Suzanne improved immensely throughout the contest and I thought she and Matt had much better chemistry than Chris and Frankie did.

well where Suzanne and Chris are concerned the discussions will always be subjective.

For what it's worth, I thought Chris improved tremendously from start to finish, he started off very unpolished and rough but he did smooth up and constantly pushed himself trying new things. (like the axel). And the partnership between Chris and Frankie, I adored because they both seemed equally competitive (altho in recent series, Frankie's turned a little sour) and even if they weren't 'gazing into each others eyes' they reminded of a pair of rebel teenagers on the ice lol.

I agree! So I don't get why everyone insists on shoving Hayley in our face all the time. Some of us have warmed to others more, whether most people find them "dull" or not. Personal opinion.

And actually, I always say, I never really think anyone is truly robbed of something. If they were meant to win, they would've. It's the public vote, after all.

For what it's worth, I agree with you about Chris. And Suzanne. I found her boring and yes her flying routine was FAB but that seemed to be down to the music, the fireworks and the way the cord spun her. All she did was pull a few different shapes.

Ignazio - we all know that it was Zaraah who was truly robbed!

Well - I was robbed of seeing Fred win!

I dunno about robbed in the sense of winning but I always thought Roxanne Pallett was severely undermarked. It's shocking to think she was getting scores at 17/18 when you think that Emily Atack got that this year. Roxanne should have been in the twenties after her 50s performance.

Won't ever forget the night that all judges gave her 4.0s, when Ruthie said to her" your best performance so far, but you dont do it for me" or something and gave her a 3.5, when the week before she gave her a 4!

Thank you! I'm glad somebody agrees with me! And I totally agree with what you say about the flying 'word for word'.

I'm not sure she's been shoved in our faces any more than the others. Kieron seems very popular on here to me.....I think it will be a close call.

Personally, I think Hayley is a very good ice dancer and very likable. My only question mark over her is whether she'd have been as good if she'd been paired with a pro she didn't know beforehand....chemistry and trust make a huge difference to a partnership and if those qualities are already there then you have a bit of a head start.

I shan't be voting, but it's Hayley I'm most looking forward to watching because I find her performances the most captivating - whether it's an energetic or a romantic dance, Hayley always pulls it off.

To me, I thought the final was totally geared up for Suzanne to win, they seemed to put Chris down at every opportunity (especially in the VTs) and I felt that the emotion of Suzanne's flying was all down to the music.

Yeah, same with the Christmas Special, all geared up for Suzanne to just parade round the ice in a Miss-Santa frockand come up with another perfect score.

Luckily, Chris has kind of had the last laugh because he won the most shows on tour the year of the competition (2008) and he was the only person who remotely close to Ray this last year on tour.

I noticed all this too. I think Kyran won (or skated) more Boleros than Suzanne as well in 2008

Nope she rose to the occasion - Suzanne hit her purple patch at just the right time.
The flying routine will always put the male at a disadvantage (Ray excepted) - but finals night did not depend on the flying - Chris could have turned things around but he didn't.

Tough on Chris - a better skater than performer; perhaps his failure to establish a true partnership with Frankie cost him - who can tell?

Whatever on finals night - Suzanne delivered - Chris didn't.

Please tell me you're having a laugh.