I have been wondering if Anton will give us a glimpse of his mambo this year, the quality of his latin dancing does not get the credit that it deserves in some quarters.

Has Mambo ever been danced on Strictly?

As for Anton's Latin - Strictly is watched by different people with very different views. some watch it simply as light entertainment, to have a bit of a giggle, etc., which is perfectly fine, and for that group of viewers Anton obliges.

Then there is another group of viewers who have actually studied, danced, teach and understand how Latin is meant to be danced, and for them Anton's Latin is entirely lacking in proper technique, etc.

I conceed that it was probably not your intention to insult millions of Strictly fans but I feel that their dance opinions are just as valid and just as important as any elite few might be, and I am proud to say that I fall into the catagory of one of the millions.

Yes! the SCD paso is usually horrendous but, then again, I loathe ballroom paso and prefer the real thing! So I am biased

Yes, you are so right. Sophie's was a proper Charleston. Mostly they are slapstick, ugly and manic! I hate that

The Charleston seems to be thought of as the dance that anyone can have a shot at. If anyone is thought to be struggling with technique or performance then giving the The Charleston either gives a week off or with the double whammy of an acting coach visit, a redemption week.

Hope I can help. I used to teach these dances. ECS is based on Lindy Hop and is part of Swing. Arthur Murray (founder of the AM Dance Studios in the US) created ECS back in 1940, and then it travelled. Brit Ballroom used it as a basis for their Jive and 'souped it up'.

Mambo is Cuban (and not salsa but very similar) and was created by Arsenio Rodriquez specifically for mambo music. It's a blast!

I taught samba too. I hate it. I will leave it to the Brazilians who dance it better than anyone else in the world. I was trained by Americans (same school as Iveta) hence my repertoire. And yes, we did Amercian Smooth as well, but not like they do it on SCD! Needless to say.

The only kind of salsa I can stand is either Colombian Cali or Cuban. Anything else is vile, but so is most of the salsa on SCD. They should drop it

Yep. What she said. And the end result is usually an ugly mess.

What type of paso doble is there other than international latin?

I don't really have a problem with the charleston as a dance whatsoever (in fact I love the era it comes from) but I do wish people were allowed a bit more scope in their interpretation. It doesn't have to look like a silent movie with all the exaggerated facial expressions. It was a real dance danced by real people too!

Thanks for your explanation of mambo and ECS btw.

Louis was the only person that series who did all three of those dances, but out of the top 9 only Lisa missed two of those dances (she made the semi-final with only the samba) and the rest did at least do two out of three.

Probably not helped by the fact that a few good couples did early Waltzes (so, less chance of seeing it back later down the line) and that some couples re-used the Cha Cha Cha for fusion week.


Anyway, my picks:


The best danced? Waltz, one of the easiest ballroom dances.

The worse danced? Samba, simply just a dance that doesn't look nice to me (some of the movements look jerky to me). Even most of my favourites (including a winner) have done non-descript version (only Dani did a nice one surprisingly).

Danced too much? Probably the Jive, even though it is one of my favourite dances. It seldom happens that the Jive is not (yet) done by a finalist.

Not danced enough? Argentine Tango, but perhaps that is a blessing in disguise?

Sorry, Terry, but it is your comment that is insulting. I was simply pointing out that different people watch Strictly from different viewpoints - for some the priority is entertainment, for others it is the technical side of dancing. I wasn't saying either group was right or wrong, simply that they will - very often - view the dancing differently.

That is a fact - not an insult.

Is there another type of Paso other than the ballroom dance? There is the Spanish dance that it is loosely based upon, but that is Flamenco - which is fantastic when danced properly.

Agree SCD pasos have nearly all been 'car crash'!

Mambo has been danced on DWTS, but I don't think it would really suit British celebs!

I got the impression from your post that you were inferring that millions of viewers were simple because they view Strictly Come Dancing as light entertainment on a Saturday night, rather than donning an anorak and train spotting the minutia of dance technique to dissect endlessly through a microscope.

It is my view that no one viewer is superior to another, each individual who watches Strictly Come Dancing is equal regardless of their motives for watching the show, and each individual viewers dancing opinions are also equal and deserve equal respect regardless of wether they are part of a cliquey select few or not.

I didn't think it had been on Strictly (it is a US dance). But was just answering Terry's comment about seeing 'Anton's mambo'.

Perhaps he was referring to Anton's mamba.

Oh come on. I never once said - or inferred - that people who watch Strictly for its entertainment value were simple, nor that one viewer is superior to another.

I respect the fact that many - probably the majority - of viewers watch and enjoy the show so much for its entertainment value - which is extremely high. And likewise most who fall into that category respect those of us who prefer to watch for the dance value. As you said "...... deserve equal respect".

I thought we'd already been treated to that

I think Terry has had a personality transplant...bit different from his usual posts

Well, I know nothing about dance, other than the melee that was English Country Dancing in the school hall but I am so grateful to posters like Sofakat, Bendymixer, Diamond Betty, yourself and others who explain things and point out the little subtleties and nuances. I actually find it enhances my enjoyment - it may 'only' be a Saturday night entertainment show but there's nothing to say it can't also be a bit educational.

So, before the bun fight of the competition proper starts, thank you all for sharing your knowledge and passion

The version I learned in Spain when studying flamenco, although we danced it as a Sevillana with castenets rather than with flamenco style with footwork and hands. Also known as El Soleo. They used to play it in the bullrings when the toreadors arrived. It also has French roots in the 16th century.

Ballroom did not invent any actual dances (other then the Lambeth Walk). they simply borrowed dances from across the world and adapted them - which is why they rarely look like the original dances or betray their real origins.

Rumba is Cuban but the way ballroom dance it you'd never know. The real one is very earthy and sexy.

It must be very hard to remember all those different personas though, don't you think? Hello today - who am I?

Thank you, Aggs. That is really lovely.

I agree with you that the opinions of all viewers deserve equal respect regardless of their motives for watching Strictly Come Dancing, the majority as well as the elite few, but as we have all seen from the television programe egg heads, great knowledge possessed by an elite few can sometimes be accompanied by a certain degree of smugness, pomposity and a detectable air of false superiority, in my fields of expertise I try at all costs to guard against these failings at all times, not to do so would be foolish of me.

What are your fields of expertise Terry?