Or they're at it like knives and trying to make sure nobody realises

I always enjoyed watching Brendan being a bad boy - and now that he is "being grown up" he isn't nearly as interesting. Saying that, I have felt that all of SCD has been going downhill for the last 3 years - I think it is because the first few years a lot of the contestants came in at similar levels (although always 1 fairly good and 1 super awful) but the rest were more level pegging. Now, it seems that the idea has not been to teach celebs a new skill, but to get several that already know how to dance - and to all of you who always jump in and say "there is a difference between dancing and ballroom dancing" - I agree, but, if you are used to dancing as part of your training/day job it has to be a lot easier than if you have only danced at a few weddings! The judges seem to pick their favourites just like the public and even when their dances are boring or even mistake ridden, give them higher scores than the real novices - and then there is the pc element - either an overweight person or an older person or someone whose "face fits" that gets higher scores. (Don't get me wrong, I like Alison ok, but some of the gushing is a bit much)
As to Brendon's partner this year - I don't like or dislike her - I think she is better than I would be, but just one of the ones there for the "journey" and not the endgame.

This thread title has me flummoxed and because certain older and over-curious Irish relatives ask me 'are you happy?' as code for 'is your sex-life good?' Why would they want to know!!?

he appears to be a little more subdued that in previous years but I wouldn't say he was unhappy

An older Asian lady I worked with when I was 17 used to ask me if I was 'eating enough bananas' when I looked unhappy, which carried the same underlying message ; )

Why do they do it?!? But perhaps a good sign for what it's like to be older...

You've come home again?

Well Brendan is married now with a baby so I guess he cannot be too outspoken on SCD and after what happened to James, I guess. like all of us, he has to pay his bills. Also having a baby takes some adjusting to, I guess the best pay cheque is from Strictly as I do not know how successful his tours have been.

Very! Sold out everywhere.

I think his age has just caught up with him, and he see's the young healthy fit pro's with their ringas and singers and thinks "that used to be me" of course he has grown up and mellowed after getting married and I hope it is his decision to go when he does rather than being let go by the BBC. The programme has changed a lot from the early years and I don't think he likes some of those changes, he has made his feelings clear about having totally the wrong music pushed onto him and even routines. maybe a spot on ITT beckons.

I'd love Brendan to judge on Strictly. I don't know if he would though.

Is Brendan Happy?

Yes, he always seems happy to me.

And yet on It Takes Two he said that he doesn't ever listen to the judges, a comment which any Aliona fan will tell you got her sacked/assigned the duffer contestant every year for being so rude/made the Prisoner Of Azkaban.

He does seem a bit bored to me. I don't know if it's Sunetra he's not clicking with or he's just a bit tired of the circus of it all after doing it for a decade. His choreography's still good though and actually I think better than some of the years when he was more engaged so...maybe ennui suits him.

Always remember Brendan with Lulu!! Gosh that was a partnership made in hell!!

I've noticed this as well. I don't think it's down to his relationship with Sunetra who he seems to get along well with, he just seems slightly distant and disengaged. I wonder if he's maybe considering moving on?

Missing James maybe? Or perhaps there were issues arising from the James situation that opened Brendan's eyes to the dancers' position on the show? Pure speculation on my part. Simply remembering that JJ mentioned BC as one who had initially agreed with JJ, back in the day, but who no longer seemed motivated to believe in the same things???

Or perhaps BC is after all happy

I feel like he is just going through the motions. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he wasn't part of SCD next year.

In all my days I have never, ever heard any Irish person ask "Are you Happy as a euphemism for "How is your sex life"...I mean never.

Oh I don't think it's a widespread thing. Some kind of family code
My family...

Tee hee hee, I get ya.

I only cracked it because everyone else understood what was being asked, otherwise I'd have blurted some over-enthusiastic rubbish and they'd have gone back to Dublin assuming I was some kind of nymphomaniac

Made me lol

Yep,agree

He looked happy in the pro training on ITT