Series 1. Natasha Kaplinsky. I wasn't a fan but for a beginner the lady could dance.
Series 2. Denise Lewis followed closely by Aled Jones.
Series 3. Colin Jackson followed by James Martin and Darren Gough. I would include Zoe Ball but for the dance classes she took before the series started.
Series 4. The winner Mark Ramprakash and runner up Matt Dawson. I wasn't a fan of Matt but from complete beginner he made phenomenal strides - just not as many as Mark;
Series 5. Gethin Jones
Series 6. I suppose Austin Healey springs to mind. I wasn't a fan.
Series 7. Has got to be Ricky Whittle - I just cannot include Chris Hollins.
Series 8. Scott Maslen - though I was never a fan.
Series 9. The winner Harry Judd was apparently a beginner - correct me if I'm wrong.
Series 10. Louis Smith had never stepped onto a dance floor.
Series 11. Cannot find previous experience for Susanna Reid - just didn't like her

And so to series 12. Seems to me there are more trained dancers than untrained. .

Frankie, Pixie, Simon and Caroline? And only Simon seems to have been pushed out of the final so far in favour of Jake.

Don't think we will get a repeat of series 10, when Louis managed to fight off all the trained celebs (you could argue that Jake would be that this year, but I doubt that he really has had 0% dance training).

P.S. Obviously Susanna wasn't an untrained celeb, as she did one of the specials.

Harry Judd too

Best what?

The true beginners dominated the early series (with the exception of Jill) didn't they? Which makes me wonder why they can't find many these days. To answer the OP question, I think Ramps was the best although Austin Healey would run him close - how great would it have been with both of them in the same series? I class Harry Judd as very nearly a beginner because Xmas Special training is pretty limited so he's up there too.

You are right about Gethin. He started quite low in the leader board but gradually get better and better. His waltz and Viennese waltz were lovely.

Jake has said he has never had a dance lesson in his life but understands music/rhythm etc because he plays the drums.

I really like Sunetra and the fact that her mother was a professional Indian dancer will not deter me from voting for her though it probably accounts for what Craig describes as her beautiful arm movements.

What does untained mean?

I'm sure you recognise a typo when you see one - or perhaps you don't.

You don't have to be so uptight all the time. The poster didn't mean anything by it.

I keep reading it as untamed, cos the i joins up with the n to my bad eyes. And I have rushed in three times already to shout, it's Steve, it's Steve... before realising. You wouldn't think I spend much of my week copy editing

I doubt Alex Jones was trained, nor Matt Baker, although he used to be a gymnast and they both did quite well.

No need to be so rude. After reading this thread 3 times I thought it was untained (without me knowing what it meant) then I thought it was unatained which didn't make any sense. I now realise it's untrained.

Sometimes you can tell a typo but this wasn't obvious to me what the word was meant to be.

I was wondering which celeb was untanned....until I opened the thread

I assume from your comment you have personally discussed this with the poster?

Oops - there I go - uptight again.

I mistook your confusion for sarcasm and for this I apologise.

Yes, we've discussed it at length over tea and crumpets. I'm going to write my thesis on it this year.

I'm a fan of Matt and I've got to be honest - there's no way he's in the untrained camp. After gymnastics he did sports acrobatics (which is more dance inspired), performed on stage in a disco show, and had lead role in musical theatre (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang). And of course there's Blue Peter - where amongst other things he entered an amateur ballroom competition and won with Zoe Salmon having performed jive and waltz. There's also footage of him dancing cha cha at the Tower Ballroom with another Blue Peter presenter.

If he was female I think he'd be more likely to be classed as a ringer than untrained

Are you really going to build your thesis around my comment on DS?

I'm flattered.