a champion of champion series with Joe and Todd - hmm

Just watched last nights show. Unbelievable that Ray was in the skate off.

The flying is so unfair - it's biased towards females. Both Hayley and Beth looked good in the air but both of them put their feet on the ice just twice!

Ray and Sam were technically the best skaters - that was shown in the previous solo skate.

Beth is good technically but not so good on performance whilst Hayley is good on performance but poor technically.
Ray and Sam were the only two left who had both.

Sam should have stayed in over the girls.

It looks like one of the girls will win now - which will be a travesty for Ray - who is the most talented dancer on ice over the whole 9 series.

If the flying was biased towards the girls then the boys versus girls week was most definitely biased towards the boys and indeed it changed the leader board considerably so I guess it all evens out in the end.

I agree Sam should still be there, he is 2nd to Ray imo.

Beth was the same in gymnastics, she was techically excellent but her performance skills always let her down especially on the floor. She doesn't have them and never will, even after all those years doing gymnastics. she is still lacking.

You beat me to it.

I hope Beth doesn't win. She's so boring I'm sorry. So technical with no flare.

Completely disagree she is technically brilliant and performs like an ice dancer who do not need to have OTT facial and hand movements!! imo

I assume the 2009 World Championships were decided by a phone vote.

Who both went early on, and by the time we got to the final 6, all the remaining celebs were former champions.

Her technical excellence must have been beyond human capability to win the world championship on the floor with such a handicap.

Beth was an uneven bars specialist where talent, not posing, was de rigeur. However despite the numerous accusations of a lack of performance skills won gold for the floor in the World Championships, World Cup and European Championships.

Not bad for a let down.

Hayley only made two (very poor) transitions - that did not apply to Beth.

I suggest you watch again.

I still think that Ray will, deservedly, win - my hope is that Beth will be runner up.

It is my opinion and many others that she was never as elegant as the Russians and other nations. She won the floor on her technical score. She does not have the grace and artistry, you can see this when she is ice-skating, it is there for all to see.

I like Beth, I wanted her to win her series but she has not improved her performance levels enough to win DOI.

You are thinking of 20th century gymnastics. Artistic impression is far less important now than difficulty. Its the same with ice skating where the marks are heavily weighted for content.

Not at all, Yuna Kim always gets massive performance marks as well as technical, Carolina Kostner has won many a medal with her massive performance marks as do Virtue and Moir in the ice-dancing.

She won - fact.

Ray should win this as he offers the whole package. He dances and is technically good too. Collaboration with partner is brilliant.

Beth should come second because technically she is one of the best. She doesn't gloss over with smiles but tackles moves that are technically extremely difficult.

Sorry Hayley. You are adorable with your partner but skating technique on your own not so good. Presentation is excellent though. All packaging imo.

Jason's behaviour toward Beth. Well he has to justify his meagre existence some how with his theatrics.

I think Beth is a better solo skater... but Hayley has got Dan. I would love to see Beth win just to spite Jason.

I realise I'm in a minority here, but I personally find Dan far more irritating than Hayley.

Imo they are well matched ... it's the OTT grinning that is so annoying.

you were the one that stated "This isn't a bog standard series, though - it's a 'champion of champions' series. The best of the champions should win, not the one who everyone feels has been most unfairly treated by the judges" not me - just pointing out the irony of what you said

So you don't think that opinions of elegance, grace and artistry are subjective, and so "in the eye of the beholder" rather than "there for all to see"? If so, I'm inclined to agree with you; but the idea that such things are totally subjective seems to be deeply engrained in these forums.

Re "she has not improved her performance levels enough to win DOI", well, says who? They judges may see it that way, and you may agree, but I prefer her performance to the likes of Hayley's; and at least she has improved in performance while Ray and Hayley seem little changed from before.

Had she been all technique and no artistry she would not have won - but she did.

The Russians might have displayed more elegance but their technical skills were clearly insufficient to bridge the gap Beth created with her technique.

So who was the best overall package - why Beth of course - and no one should try to belittle the achievements of one of Britain's most successful athletes.

Ray leaves me cold, I have to say. Surely DOI isn't a skating contest, or a dancing contest, but it's about the overall package, about having a couple who can put on a performance on ice which entertains us? With Ray, I feel unmoved, he just seems like the kid at school who always wanted to be best at everything. I like a little light and shade. So for me, out of those left behind, I'm veering towards Beth, because she always brings something new and usually exciting. Hayley is too drama school, and I have to keep getting the image of a thirty something woman acting like a fresh out of college school kid out of my head.

It's just ridiculous!

In Ray's case being expressive and conveying emotion is most certainly not about the BIB. Ray's performances are often subtly nuanced and convey a range of emotions. It's not all about jazz hands.

The problem I have with Beth is that I see no emotion. There might be acting, smiles, gesticulations but I feel absolutely no connection to her on the ice whatsoever.