To say I enjoy listening to karen hardy on ITT, but some of what she says is debatable at times especially this year, she definitely seems a bit peeved off about something and I think it's the new big boss of the show of which I think shes done the same with the judges too.

I am a bit lost here. Can you elaborate with specifics?

Kind of feels like although she has her own input and she is biting her tongue to her bosses requirements, I don't think she is entirely comfortable and wondering with also if karen has had fallouts with the people in charge. Her view on natalies VW was the same as len and I found that quite perplexing, yet with susanah she thought that dance deserved a 10. Am not so sure whether she is thinking how most people are thinking this time round.

I was very surprised to say the least when she said that charleston deserved a ten. But she was right about Mark's Paso, and Natalie's VW-lite VW.

Given her usual over exuberance, on ITT,
"I'll have what she's having."

May I say I preferred her when she was a dancer. She knows her stuff but I wish she were a bit more 'natural'.

Give me Vincent and Flavia any day.

I have to say though I did learn elements of ballroom dancing from Karen's choreography corner, I learned a lot more (or it felt that way) from Vincent and Flavia when they temporarily took over.

Karen, like everyone else in life, has her foibles and preferences. She appears fairly rational and knowledgeable when talking about certain performances and then has a tendency to come right out of left field with a remark of apparent jibberish, simply because something in a performance has triggered her "YAY! WHOO HOO!" button.

In Karen's case, she is very susceptible to fit blokes and anyone doing the facial equivalent of a Louis Smith pommel horse routine.

Don't we all.

From Wiki - which surprises me sometimes.

"She is also an adjudicator and now judges all of the Grand Slam events worldwide which she had previously competed in and more. "

Ashley and Ben, both she praised, and kind of played down their weakness. Hmm, I am beginning to see the light!


Gosh. Really?

A very highly respected one too!

Karen knows less about the Charleston so it's probably easier for her to enjoy it without critique!

She even got the name of the Charleston step she demonstrated completely wrong

I can't recall why she was no longer a pro dancer on SCD, but if my memory serves me right, wasn't she part of a cull of the pro dancers a few years back?

Whatever the reason, I can't take to her commentary/observations on ITT. Can't put my finger on it, but may be because I didn't really rate her as a pro dancer.

Think the jet lag got to len a tad. Yes there probably is some sense what they say sometimes but not entirely with how most people perceive a dance.

I thought she left because she opened a new dance studio and would be too busy - could be wrong though

She left to open her own dance school & couldn't commit enough time to do SCD.

The times I watch ITT I have it on mute because of the WAYHOO's and GIVE IT UP FOR ABBEYANDALLYEESHHH WAYHOO, except for the part where Karen is on.

I find her knowledgeable and pleasant, and not so hysterical as she was as a dancer.

But a 10 for that charleston?

I loved Karen as a pro dancer on the show and her Choreography Corner is probably my favourite part of ITT.

This year in particular I think she is frustrated by the judges the same way many of us are too (I think it started showing last year).

I know she is very much a Marmite person on here, but anyone doubting her pedigree to comment on the dancing are barking up the wrong tree.

I'm sure she knows what she is talking about and is very experienced, but she's so irritating. It's that awful screechy voice combined with the OTT excitable personality.

I would much rather have Flavia and Vincent every week on choreography corner. Flavia explains things clearly and calmly and Vincent is just hilarious.

Flavia and Vincent also managed to comment on the choreography rather than being a 5th judge.

Vincent might start to grate someone here if he appears in the CC week in week out.

She and her partner Bryan Watson were runners-up in the World Professional Latin Championships for many years and she is the highest qualified professional to appear on this show. I think she left because she had a posh new dance school to organise. I'm not surprised if she sometimes disagrees with the judges - after all she is a real judge, not just a pretend one.

think Matt Cutler Paul Killick and Inga Haas would disagree )

She knows her stuff,I was hoping she would have taken Alesha Dixons place on the panel.