I have added a little edit above. Not saying you had problems with DVO, but many of the detractors of DVO bleated that she's a highly skilled dancer (but she lied) but it was alright for Natalie to be highly skilled because she didn't lie about it, or now perhaps her CV was over-inflated, implying?, she in fact lied about her being highly proficient in those dance disciplines? Which is worse?

Sorry I wasn't really in the loop with all this.

Nat has said she has had dance training.

She's been acting for more than a few years now and hasn't danced.

A CV or resume may 'exaggerrate' or 'put the optimal' (what she did before her injury, but that's pretty common practice.

I just don't think it's a massive deal, any of it.

She was awarded advanced level dancing certificates at age 17 prior to joining the Italia Conti school where she received more dance training up to the time she was injured.

Not sure how advanced this makes her but more certainly that Mark , Abbey, Sophie and Susanna.

AAAAAAaaaaaand - I still don't care.

I think hers is the least enviable position in this comp.

Ready made excuses for hatred and dismissal.

I think she works very hard and is very good, she's not finding it all 'easy' and people expect a lot from her.

I'm glad she's there, she's dragging the competition UP.

I just think that we (the collective 'we' is inaccurate, but let's just encompass the entire human race here) pick somebody most years as the 'ringer du jour' and this year Natalie is the easy target, (a) because she admitted to previous dance training, and (b) because she's good. DVO equating her stint dancing on Chicago as 'sitting on a chair' was seen as disingenuous so did her no favours.

Personally, I'd lie about my previous experience, as others have (allegedly) successfully done.

[quote=aimeeaimee1000;69853111]
Well said!

Tess said shortly after the season started that the SCD celeb pool is shrinking. It does not surprise me that the majority of people interested in participating now have some sort of performance experience whether it's dance or drama. In order to have a full cast of people without ANY experience we're looking at producers signing only sportspeople and athletes which would mean the same "Journey" over and over and over. Yawn!

Depending on how long the show continues to run, we viewers should be prepared for more and more celebs that already have training of some sort. But then when that happens people will only argue that certain others have more experience/had better teachers/went to better stage schools than their counterparts! In other words most people love a moan and will never be happy.

I don't disagree here, Rhumba...

I was just pointing out that although she would understandably over inflate her cv she still does have more pre strictly dance experience.

That doesn't bother me in itself, she just irritates the cr*p out of me but I'm glad she is in the show as it adds spice.

That's how I feel too.

In fact, I would go further to say that once people start talking about her being a 'caring mother', who of course also works extremely hard at her successful career... it puts me off even more. It's as if she is embodying the 'ideal middle class woman', who, of course, can do no wrong...

I want to see someone win Strictly after a bit of a struggle on the way, not sail through it with a rather smug look on her/his face.

As to Natalie - I have no objection to her as a contestant, and at least she has been honest about her training (which is of a higher calibre than anyone else in the competition), but I am not excited by her dancing - it is excellent most of the time, that's true, but it just doesn't 'do it' for me.

For what it's worth, my feet are also in two camps - Sophie and Abby.
Perhaps it's because they are not quite as 'perfect'...I dunno...

Well, *you* don't care, others do. Doesn't mean they hate her. I do care, because it explains quite a great deal why she's so blimmingly good and I look forward to seeing her scaling new heights with Artem every week. Facts are there, no point denying its existence. How others view those facts is entirely up to them, getting huffy and puffy about it won't do an iota of difference now is there? But I take exception to the BIB. I don't hate nor dismiss her, equally I don't crucify DVO for being highly skilled or presumbly lying about it. That said, I didn't always like DVO's dance as much as I like Natalie's efforts thus far (up and including the Charleston, sans that look-stupid-I-know-it track).

There's pretty much always SOMEONE that irritates the crap out of me too.

But it's not Nat, or Susannah, for me - although I can see the certain ambitious, hard nosed and determined mindset offends others.

I rather admire it. It's not as though I'm competing in any way with them.

hehe, it's "LOVE's stupid, I know it"

I wasn't talking about YOU particularly SCO - but you must admit that this RINGAH stuff is pretty prevalent.

I don't deny the existence of her skill either - I just know it's not working FOR her. She won't win. She's like a pace setter.

And this season really needs her.

And of course how others view it is 'up to them' and how I see her and the attitudes towards her is UP TO ME - goodness there's evidence aplenty isn't there?

Good post. I would like to see Natalie improve, to do something that makes me think she has gone up a level. But I haven't yet, she was amazing from week one and this is one of the reasons she bores me. With Sophie, Abbey, Susanna, Ashley and Patrick I am seeing the improvements, not always week by week admittedly but they are there, and it is more exciting. More Strictly.

Hmm, I am sure you are not being disingenuous there, but if her being a caring mother (not that I care, I don't factor such things into the equation in liking a contestant), why does that somehow equate that she's perfect (i.e. can do no wrong)? That paragraph makes absolutely no sense to me and somehow resulting it sounding rather bitter...

Also, what gives you the impression that Susanna didn't struggle in her trainning. Because she didn't whine how difficult the training was? How was Susanna scored compared to the likes of Abbey and Sophie in that respect (two of whom I like very much as contestants, presently having a full-on pash on Sophie)? And even if you refer that bit to Natalie, I think it's not a fair criticism as well, she pushed herself so hard that her old injury returned and only two weeks ago she worked herself to exhaustion...

Certainly no bitterness intended.
It's just the sense I have always got from watching Susanna Reid. She reminds me of a school 'head girl' who then goes on to do all the things our mothers/teachers wanted us to do, but some of us had our own ideas.
She is probably a nice person who I could have an interesting conversation with..... doesn't stop me not warming to her though....


I see where you are coming from, and yes, we are given the impression (a lot) that Susanna works extremely hard in training so I guess she is struggling in places. But for me it's not just about struggling in training, it's something less well-defined....perhaps a contestant struggling to come to terms with what is expected of them?

OK, so, to sum up, and to save us all a lot of typing...we have

In the red corner - Susanna is a jolly hockey sticks middle class head girl with dead eyes and a rictus grin and is a crap dancer and

In the blue corner - Susanna is not any of those things and/or Susanna is a MILF

Does that about sum it up?

I feel the same. I can't take to her at all but I don't know why. I didn't know her before Strictly either.

Susannah is a bit of both - some like a bit of bossiness

I admire her grit, and I have loved her last two dances.

I think her dancing is okay.
And surely an ex-head girl would be some guys' ideal MILF?

To most men I know, Susanna's just a MILF - never mind any of the rest. Some of them have never watched SCD before, but are doing so now - and they're voting online, too.

They like her in the skimpy costumes best.....

Purpple corner - Susanna is a crotch-sniffing gypsy who likes to fan her lady bits...

I absolutely love her. She seems confident, but not cocky. She likes the whole experience, and takes it all in. I also like her partnership with Kevin, they work really well together, and their personalities seem to mesh well to work on the dance floor well together.

Especially in a gymslip.

In the interests of fairness - the ovary voting every year has SERIOUSLY influenced the leaderboard