Oh thats getting nominated for Post of the Day, that's the best description I've read yet

AS has lifts.

The mind boggles.

But yes, you're right, I was being far too generous to Ann, sorry.

So, I fully expect Honest Ann to take a 70% pay cut.

After all, hey, it's the Age Of Austerity, you know.

Julian Clary's show dance was amazing, the public liked it, but things the public like are not often liked here.

Julian Clary looks like Ricky Whittle next to Ann. He also actually made an effort to learn the dances - unlike Ann, who refuses to do half of them.

And the public can't have liked Julian that much as they preferred Denise Lewis and Jill Halfpenny. So, again, the facts rather conflict with your assertions about public taste.

And how exactly do you know how much the public like Ann?

I've been to the so-called "real" world. It sucks major arse. And it's cold.

You have a disturbing tendency to lump everyone together into one amorphous mass that supposedly represents reality. It should also be noted that a certain proportion of this "public" you speak of are morons.

She won't do the Argentine Tango - those Argies, after our Falklands, tut tut, none of that sort of thing here.

Viennese Waltz? No, no, no, don;t you know anything about WW2, the plucky Brits, the evil Hun, the Blitz, the Battle of Britian, Sink the Tirpitz ...[cont page 2]

Charleston? It came from the Speakeasies you know, drink and gangsters.

Salsa? Those South American floozies wearing hardly any clothes and shaking ther chesticles? No thank you.
i
American Smooth? The Americans have never been the same since they elected that democrat. Can't have anything to do with American anything till they bring back George W Bush.

It's a light entertainment show, based upon a dance contest. The dance competition is the very foundation of the show. People who don't want to learn to dance to the best of their ability are not entertaining. People who are passionate about dance and who make every effort to do their best and to improve produce entertaining routines and performances.

And, no, Ann is not Strictly this year. It's just that the media - or certain media outlets - have chosen to concentrate almost exclusively on her and virtually ignore all the other contestants, in an effort to try and portray Ann as being what Strictly is about. She doesn't represent Strictly for me.

Even those who can't be bothered

I don't understand what you mean

Excuse please.

This is Flekkel from Planet Danzepoorista.

We are very much liking your Earth show on Saturday night which shows Earthlings of all shapes and sizes learning the happy skill of danze. However, we have confusion. Why is there larger lady who appears every week and trundles round floor with younger man? This does not seem to have entertainment and although music is playing, it is surely not danze? My fellow Danzepooristas have noticed that this tv channel does not have interlude where watcher can make beverage. This programme is long so perhaps this is the reason for this insertion? Maybe Earthlings enjoy seeing person of more advanced years move awkwardly and without grace? We are not understanding but we are not in touch with your real world.

Thank you very much for rest of show.

I like that world.

Evidently not everyone is for dance.

Do you dance, Terry?

Dear Flekel

The larger lady is our first, best, and last line of defence against you evil invading joyless alien dahnce purists.

So far, she has already bravely volunteered to test our prototype anti-aircraft "flying woman" defences, our "emperor Dalek" armoured costume, and the "human cannon sliding on the floor" weapon.

Not only that, but now the small-scale field tests are complete, she will be test-dancing our wonder weapons at a large-scale arena next week, to ensure they work outside the test lab.

To answer your "how is such a lump still in the competition" question, welll this is the fiendishly clever bit. Obviously, no-one in the public actually votes for her - but we have teams of specially-trained volunteers, based in underground bunkers throughout the country, whose sole duty it is to vote for her on Saturday evenings.

We shall fight you on the ballrooms. We shall never surrender.

Please take her back with you for research.

I actually couldn't agree with you more. For me personally, the only entertainment the show provides is watching the likes of Kara & Scott's talent (& seeing the likes of Patsy go from nowhere to something representing a halfway decent dancer), and also watching the pro dancers.

However, not everyone feels the same. Some genuinely find the non-dancing antics of the likes of Ann more entertaining and fun. I might disagree with their view, but I accept that everyone has a right to his/her opinion.

The nation isn't the same thing as the people who vote and probably a majority (even if a small majority) of them don't vote for her. People who feel compelled to vote this early , vote for all sorts of reasons inckuding some who will vote on the urge to support failures or dislike of the judges or having a particular sense of humour, or a lack of one.

Given most newspapers are run by right wing press barons and more than half are targetted to the right and anti-BBC, its hardly surprising if they are backing Ann to win and to make the BBC lose one of its biggest shows.

If Ann wins I don't think the beeb will lose the show. What I think they might do is pick their celebs more carefully in future and leave out the obvious pantomime acts.

Patsy's journey on Strictly Come Dancing has been amazing and I'm sure there is more to come, its great that she has some fans here as well as in the real world.

The SCD powers that be must have known she would be crap at dancing so why did they invite her

Too many are seeing this as purely entertainment maybe and they realised that from the last few years?

I don't like to admit it as for me SCD is a dance competition first and foremost with the entertainment as second but I think you do have a point. I didn't watch much of last year because of this reason and I am disappointed that they have gone back to the old format of letting only the public decide.

Liking your style.

Well said.