And he didn't say Alex was sexless, cold and stiff so, again, I stand by my opinion that he was correct and the rumba she performed was sexless, cold and stiff.
I don't believe she was crushed at all no, I think it upset her and I have already said I believe Craig's comment was harsh because he hadn't originally intended to expand on it.

I didn't like what Craig said to Alex but usually I agree with him more than the others and often his critisism is much more helpful than brunos waving arms and alesha's adoring it.

Am I the only one who thinks that the judges were unduly nasty to Nancy?! Whether you think she deserved it or not, those comments were brutal- especially Alesha's, who, by the way, is a TALKING Disaster! We (in my house) don't think they had to be so rude and harsh, just for the sake of 'entertainment'. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth, and I agree with the comments on here -that there should be constructive criticism not just soul-destroying mean comments.

I sort of remember when one of the judges said one of the contestants resembled a walrus. If that was a comparion to the way the celeb danced then what does a Walrus dance like?.... not is probably the answer, and so is that a helpful critique or not? If it was a comparison of the celebs appearance (which I guess not) that there is an example of a personal and pointless comment. I wish I remember which celeb that was aimed at now and the exact nature of the comparison. When Arlene said (along the lines of) John S was a dancing pig that too is personal and pointless (even if just said in the papers and not on the show). I agree that Nancy could have been given more encouraging comments.

You're right it was said in the papers, well the Daily Mail actually. But it was written by Ann Leslie, who is apparently a friend of John and is a journalist, not an SCD judge.

Oh, I thought Arlene said it, sorry Arlene!!!

I too found some of the comments unduly harsh, especially Alesha's about Nancy's legs. Some previous contestants knew they were never going to be any good at dancing, john sargeant for inst, and expected bad comments etc, but I think Nancy did try and it made the comments just downright unpleasant. I think the judges will have to be careful about just how nasty they get, because they've got to get contestants for next year and no one will go anywhere near SCD if they think they are just going to be publicly humiliated and destroyed.

megs

Alesha's comment to Nancy was "Your legs are to far apart " How is that harsh ? That is a fair criticism, she wasn't being unkind she was commenting on her stance in the dance. It is no different to Craig critising someone hands

It was the implication in this case.

And what do you think the implication was then, Terry?

I think it was Len that made a mean comment about Anita's personal region, but said nothing to his favourite filly Chelsee about her personal region, even though hers was more obviously on display. I think the girls personal regions should be off limits to Lens eye's.

What "personal regions"? And do you have to keep referring to women as "fillies"? I can't be the only person who finds it offensive, surely?

Why is the judges over marking they favourites Alex Jones?
The women has no charisma her yop of her body sometimes does not belong to the bottom .I watched the show for many a moon and her foot work is not the best Chelsee however has really good foot work and my daughter did ask who is the professional between her and Pasha. Holly danced better with Brendan the was no awkardness. Jason Donovan no comment have nothing good to say and Harry well I will go and get the baby oil Robbie is improving week on week although he still isnt there yet quite flat footed. Anita darling you should have went last week past your sell by date just my opnions on events not everyone's I know.

It was sexless. And since the criticism she has tried harder and improved so the criticism as well as being true was clearly constructive.

Newbie here - have browsed for ages but first comment posted!!
Craig rocks!
After his thoughtless comments to Alex he seems to have changed tack and tries to explain what they need to work on and why the marks were lower, that's if he can get a word in over the other judges' interruptions and the audience's booing. Those that want to learn listen to him and all seem to want to please him rather than the other judges.
I look forward to seeing him on ITT on Mondays as he is given the time to explain

He's old-fashioned. I suspect it's the French that is pulling Terry towards the apparently sexist word. He's determinedly bashful with women. Or something.

This is probably the wrong place to praise Len but I loved the way he evaluated Chelsee's samba realistically: 'I don't know about "Spice up Your LIfe" but you spiced up my night'. In this show where hyperbole is common currency, this was a masterful use of understatement and it had the ring of truth.

It is much easier to spot a shortfall than to offer insight on how it can be made good. We can all say capitalist economies are in a hopeless mess, but which one of us can point to a credible way out?

Vicious dismissal simply exposes the poverty of the judge as a person. If Craig was a schoolmaster I shudder to think what he would say to children not at the top of the class. Would you send your own children there?

He called Mark Foster a stick insect on acid, no doubt overjoyed to enhance his own box-office value as pantomime villain. What other name-callings can you recall? If Craig stood in front of you to receive judgment, how would you sum him up in Craigspeak?

A prize for the best.

It took 3 pages here to establish that contact Was made, and that Holly's trip gate did occur, please tell me we are not going to have to go down the same long and winding road to establish that Len did make a personal remark about Anita's private personage.

I don't think any of the judges are perfect, and they all get it wrong in how they put comments across sometimes.

Craig's comments are closest to his marks so in that respect he is probably the most consistent, but the tight time constraints means he often comes out with a shopping list of faults, some of which don't always mean much to the public or, I'm guessing, the celeb (e.g. "crumbly transitions"). It doesn't help that he often gets shouted down by Len or booed by the audience before he can get out his one small positive comment at the end.

I've never joined in the general hatred for Alesha-as-judge and I do quite like her in the role especially as she has grown in confidence. She does overmark but given that she, more than any of them, judges on performance rather than technicality that can be forgiven in her more readily than it can in, say, self-proclaimed "ballroom expert" Len. When she does have something more technical to point out, she tends to identify one area for improvement which gives the celeb a single point of focus.

Bruno can talk quite a lot of sense (in terms of critique) but it so often gets lost in his swirly arms and general bonkersness that you remember the daftness and forget the sense. He can also be quite cruel and cutting, much more so than Craig on occasion but he's more likely to get away with it because he does it with a maniacal laugh and an overblown impersonation of whatever just went wrong in the dance.

Len. Where do I start with Len? Inconsistent, grouchy, nasty, holds a grudge, wants to be seen by the public as the avuncular uncle and by the other judges & pros as the respected headmaster who should not be talked back to, is as likely to mark a dance in response to Craig's comments rather than his own opinion, impatient, intolerant, sexist....I could go on, but the steam coming out of my keyboard is making it hard to see the screen...

It was Len that pulled the equestrian analogy out of the bag when he refereed to Chelsee as his Dark Horse. I felt at the time that it was a bit insulting as I haven't found Chelsee in the slightest bit clodhopperish. It would have been infinitely more flattering and closer to the truth if Len had refereed to Holly as his filly.

Its clear that Chelsee is Lens chosen one for the glitter ball, which is fair enough because everyone is bound to have a favourite. If Chelsee spiced up Lens life by trotting into his dressing room to ask for some advice, I'm sure he would give it to her there and then. I can just imagine Len saying " Take a hold of this my dear to steady yourself while you practice your heel turns."

I was watching round my friends place and we were discussing whether to have a Chinese at the time, but I'm fairly sure Len commented on Anita's private personage.

"Dark horse" isn't the same sort of analogy at all.

It wouldn't have been more flattering at all. It would have been offensive - as your comments are.

I made a mistake, I meant to say Chelsee not Holly.

They said on ITT that Holly is a thoroughbred, another horsey term, naughty ITT.