I've noticed that my use of the mute button when watching Strictly or ITT is steadily increasing. It may just be the Grumpy Old Woman syndrome, of course, but is anyone else so irritated by the following that they have to blank them out?

- Pamela (all the time now - used to be only when she laughed but now the mere sight and sound of her gets the mute reflex going).
- By contagion, James, whose sense of humour I have appreciated in previous years.
- Bruce and Tess nearly all the time, especially Tess when in her tower.
- Scott. Can't stand the accent, snob that I am, or the funny voices.
- Pretty well all the guest 'singers', especially Duffy last weekend and the succession of superannuated crooners.
- Katya, because she's American and a tough b---h.

Katya is not American .

She was born in Lithuania......lived for a time in Isreal and then moved to Canada when she was 13.

Oops! Sorry! I gathered from her name that she was of East European stock but didn't realise she was Canadian rather than American.

Lithuania is a Baltic not Balkan country.

I mute Bruce (always); Pamela (most of the time) and nearly every guest singer so far (Duffy being a prime example).

I also mute quite a bit of Claudia talking to the 'saved' couples on SCD. I love CW on ITT but I just find that bit so cringemaking.

The only time I have turned the volume down was when that duffy sang, and thats a first.

I don't mute but I start watching Strictly on my Sky+ about 20 minutes behind live broadcast so I can skip all of Bruce's "jokes" and it usually catches up with the live broadcast towards the end so I still have the full time to vote. It makes for much better viewing.

You are not alone.

The mute button and FF is essential in order to get you through the ghastly bits.

I'd like to make it to Christmas with a sense of humour, so both are essential. Once I start shouting at the TV I know all is lost!

I don't recall ever using the Mute button when the show is on - I might miss something!

Surely Lithuania counts as eastern Europe? Don't know why you mentioned the Balkans - I never thought it was down there.

Lithunia is a Baltic State and they are in North East Europe .The Balkans are in South West Europe . So Katya would be considered East European .

I often mute the training VTs, especially later in the series when we've heard the same old guff over and over.

Last year I had to mute Ricky W's VTs every week cos I got so sick of him saying "you only have to make one mistake and you're gone", as if the judges would ever give him less than a nine...

I don't mute SCD a lot. I do ITT though.

I wish you could get an 'eliminate' button.
zap. gone!
There'd be no presenters, only one judge and just two couples left in if I had my way

I used to record the show and fast forward all the judges' comments. But somehow I have been able to stand them better lately. With one exception - I always mute Bruno! I'll never be able to stand his exaggerated behaviour. Timing muting him precisely is fun .

Using the Mute Button


I usually sky+ both shows so I never have to listen to Nellie or Mrs Winkle, I can't be doing with either of them.

I started out by muting Bruce - haven't heard a single word he's said in 5 years.

Then I added Tess.

And then Alesha too.

But in the ITT before Blackpool, where they showed clips of last year, I heard Alesha say to Craig Kelly "You're not as good as you think you are". So it just goes to show that when you mute you do sometimes miss the best bits

The only time when I would want to use the mute button is during some of the worse Brucie moments, otherwise I'm pretty stoical and I just go with the flow. I think a few years ago someone annoyed me a lot, but I can't even remember who that was.

Me too - that way I can avoid the most cringeworthy vts (Pamela and Ann) and watch all performances except Ann.

All Hail the mute and ff buttons.

I should use it on Kara oh and Patsy one whose voice grates the other simpers. Oh and that women on ITT drives me nuts who does the choriography review. Then there is the plank.

Oh, I forgot Patsy on my list of people-to-be-silenced-at-all-cost. What substance is she on? False to the core, hyped up and just plain silly, imho. I cannot understand the support she has, either for her person or her dancing.

Alesha is terrible sometimes, particularly when she laughs.

I agree. It was painful to watch her last Saturday.

I forgot to include Alesha.

btw I think that laugh is false - we don't hear nearly as often or as loudly as we did when she danced with Matt.

I mute Bruce almost all the time. Len's getting the same treatment if he doesn't - to paraphrase Claudia - buck up. I thought he was creepy on ITT.

I have muted Claudia, I find her increasingly irritating and rabid. She doesn't seem to have setting for medium or normal everything is FANTASTIC or TERRIBLE (even on Film 2011, a show I can't watch...I tried to).

I have muted Pamela a bit too...yes, we know dear!

Yep include the opening segment of Bruce and Tess on my list.