Fabulous. Why can't we have stuff like that filling the SCD salsa slot? Its just as showy.

Hahahaaaaaaa!

Sorry. *coughs*

Not her fault no. But as she has had the discipline and focus that is needed to reach the top of her calling as a gymnast, I think it unlikely that she has the experience of the angst of unrequited love etc. I think this is what the judges are getting at. She doesn't emote because she hasn't the life experience to draw on to know what those emotions feel like. Not her fault but might explain why her dances are somewhat clincal.

And he might not be much a teacher. All he has ever done is perform. Teaching dance is a real skill.

Teaching anything is a real skill. Just because you've done something to a high level does not make you expert in teaching it. Many phenomenal practitioners are cr@p teachers.

Anyway even if AJ can teach, he's unlikely to realise much potential within weeks of giving up competitive dancing. Nobody becomes an excellent teacher overnight.

And again I think it is down to life experience. Without life experience I don't see how one has the knowledge to tap into what makes an individual tick in order to teach them. I don't mean to imply that life expereince alone is enough to turn anyone into a gifted teacher. But I do feel it is necessary to make the transition from demonstrator to teacher.

Just from a personal point of view I think AJ's done very well in teaching Claudia - especially in perfecting her frame despite the height difference.

Brilliant.



Love a good tote myself, I have several that I always think look good but turn out to be full of carp. Not making comparisons or anything...

Going back to Cloudier, I think the 'walk walk pose' thing is her gymnastics training. It used to be that floor routines flowed and had dance moves between tumbles, now it's just one long set of tumbles, walk, another long set of tumbles, walk, and so on. And they always signal before a complex move, by stopping completely and getting their breathing right first. And that's exactly how she dances.

I think Danny and Oti's salsa was choreographed by that Platero bloke! Not a good idea!

They will also often look down for a moment as they make this prep, gathering their concentration.

Oh dear, I can't quote all the posts I agree with...but yes, you're all quite right.

Words fail me a bit after last night's rather dull show. I just don't get what the judges see in Louise. She's exactly the same as she was in week one! (Have they done even ONE impressive lift? Let alone an impressive routine??)

I've already forgotten Ore's first dance, and the so-called AT was dull.

Cloudier and AJ I find quite impressive - but yes, she does beautiful moves, then stops, and does another beautiful move. Not much fluidity in the rumba, but I still thought it was quite all right. And if they know she's too young to do a dance properly, why does she get asked to do the show? (Or why does she have to do that dance in the semis, rather than get it out of the way early while she's still 'growing'.) Seems a bit unfair to me...

Danny's first dance, while good, seemed very slow to me - but then I wasn't sure what it was at first (I don't understand Salsa, somehow). If that was Mr Platero's work, he needs to spice it up a bit. And the AS was perfect and amazing (and as for why he wears what he wears, that's the Gene Kelly look, isn't it. High-waisted trousers - which he carries off beautifully, I must say - and a soft, not too tight shirt to look casual and comfortable as well as ready for everything). And the catching-each-other's-eye-and-smiling moment in every dance is just delightful.

And after the scores all I can say is, can we vote the judges off please?

Deeply unappreciating Kev's great cheesy mooey grinning up at me from the front of the Telegraph when I went to the paper shop. Why are he and Mrs Cardigan being featured?
Much as I dislike Ore, shouldn't he and Joanne be there, what with them being completely fairly at the top of the leaderboard?

it was dreadful. worst dance of the night by far.

As a generalist viewer, I still found it infinitely more watchable than Claudia's jerky rumba or Ore's lamppost impersonation, or Louise trying not to die of mortification in a flowery swimming hat.

I don't really take the "you're so young" comments at face value--seems to me a polite way of packaging their criticism. She's an elite athlete, not a stage performer--expressing emotion through her body/face are just not her strength. She did it well in the salsa, where I think she really was having fun and it came through.

I also liked Danny's look for the AS, though due to his slight stature he was swallowed up by the high-waisted trousers, which made him even less sexy (to me).

Nope, not even close.
It wasn't his best by far, but it was still miles better than Louise's impression of a mortified housewife having a bit of a jig about with a bowl of fruit on her head.

i especially didn't like danny swinging it around like a slightly tipsy dad at a wedding, or the 100 yard dash that oti did to hurl herself rather prosaically over the edge. although i could see why she might want to do it. poor girl.

her costume was awful. and kevin reminded me of jerry lewis playing some suburban loaf.

but her feet were great.

To be honest I can't remember what her feet were doing (which probably says something in itself). I was completely distracted by the combination of her look of utter embarrassment and Kev over dancing as though his life depended on it.

All of the above, brilliant.
Can't beat DOT's on a roll ❤️

If you watched Jwann's bike tango followed by TTF's conveyor belt tango one after the other, you'd be hard pressed to know which was week one and which was semi final. Smiley mod tango was questionable last year but now seems to be an actual choice? I guess the plus point this year is at least we'll not get to see it the final, if they get there, because it's too recent?

Didn't mind Danny's salsa - it was what it was and at least he did what he'd been given fairly efficiently. Didn't like Clowdier's bum fluff rhumba, didn't like smiley tango, found the pleather quickstep meh. Felt mortified on behalf of Louise for the synchronised swimming samba, loved Danny's AS, really liked Cloudier's QS and found Ore's AT wobbly and bewildering.

For me, the difference between Danny and Ore's outside choreographed dances was that Danny did what he was been given fairly competently but Ore wobbled and looked unsure.

It's the same storyline as Louis had - it's just that he was deemed to breakthrough in his Charleston and it wasn't left until semi final week

This year, the breakthrough storyline has been allocated to Louise and her cha cha/Charleston/AT ... and came to a grinding holt in the Samba of mortification ...

(I don't actually find Danny that sexy at all - but I do like him, which is an unexpected bonus - and he does routines that I dance in my head and thrill my little MGM heart )

For me that was Louise's samba. I laughed from beginning to end it was so awful.....but on the upside made me like Louise. She actually loosened up a bit and was killing herself laughing at one point. She brought me the joy that has been lacking since the departure of Ed.

I'm not sure she was bringing the joy of the dance. I thought she was more likely laughing at the galloping cringefest that was Kev, in his horrendous fluorescent shirt / hair hat combo.

Just watched it again and the Clifton bias was still too strong. Louise made mistakes, smiled all the way through her tango and her Samba seemed to be based around: "Kevin, have you seen that stain on the carpet?" "Ooh, no, where?" "Over there, I'd best get the febreze!" whilst she had a fruit bowl perched on her head.

Jwann and TinyTears irritate me more every week. Their AT, if you can even call it that, was just boring and lifeless. No chemistry at all and why did Ore keep looking at the camera all the time? Best bit was him jumping over the motorbike, if only because I kept hoping he would knock himself out on it.

I really like Cloudier and AJ. Their rumba was awful, but I really enjoyed their quickstep. They got it perfect - floating on top with all the business going on down under, whereas TinyTears was like a kangaroo, leaping about the place.

That's a good analysis, Nakatomi. I agree with a lot of that. Which makes me wonder why the hell I am wasting hours of my life watching SCD anymore.
The BBC obviously think it will be great for ratings to have both bloody Cliftons in the final and they'll stop at nothing to achieve that. Hence the totally ridiculous marking tonight.
I really have lost interest and as long as TTF doesn't win, I couldn't give a shit who lifts the Glitterball.