Ok thanks. Has there ever been any surprising winners?


Danny and Oti definitely seemed calmer this week. They are probably worried about the dances but I think that they also just tired. They have been non-stop for 14 weeks.

He didn't think Jay would win either.
Obviously we don't know, Danny's vote hasn't been tested in a while but he seems pretty popular on social media and so is Oti.

I think quite a few people didn't expect Chris to win but he had clear support - however much some people ignored it - and neither Ricky nor Ali were exciting enough to get lots of support. I found both duller than wallpaper and Ricky had a host of personal issues holding him back. I think Darren Gough was the closest to a surprise winner but he had a massive journey (and the lovely Lilia). I watched Strictly S4-8 and wasn't ever surprised by a winner as far as I can remember. People argue the best dancer doesn't always win and I agree to an extent but that's often when the best dancer is insanely competitive, dull or unlikeable.

I think everyone might end up echoing Danny and Oti's nerves. I wouldn't be surprised if they've gone back to train more tonight. Two dances is hard but I think they'll be alright.

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THEM ; Great interview today as always

They will be more than fine Saturday; I am not worried

Me too; I dont know why a lot of people in this forum seem to think that he has it in the bag In my opinion, his biggest competition is Claudia. If she makes it in the final, she has more of a chance to win than him . A lot of people seem to have rallied towards her recently and see her as the " underdog ", undermarked contestant with " no dance experience ", and a journey.

Dont get me wrong,I still think that Danny has a very good chance but it is not set in stone like some people seem to think on the main board. the only surprising winner in recent years was ABBEY CLANCY;Most people literally did NOT see that coming; even her most hardcore fans. I was one of them and till this day I still cant believe she won

Thanks for the reply. I didn't want Chris to win. I was a fan of Ricky's.

Yeah, they probably have. Danny and Oti will be fine. I have faith in them.



What journey has Claudia had? I don't think that she's had one. They just made a big thing about her getting a 10.

I don't think that I watched Abbey's year properly.

My feelings for Ricky were similar to the way I feel about Louise now. I could appreciate his technical skill but he left me cold (that gorgeous QS aside). He definitely didn't have the support that Danny does.

I think Claudia benefits from not having been as good and highly praised as the rest. She was the only one without a ten until last week; it's not much of a journey but it's more than anyone else has had. I do wonder how different this series would have been if Danny had got tens for his QS and Ore had been undermarked for his jive though.

ETA it's getting vicious out there. I've been away from the forums for a few years and I had forgotten how often people go on the attack as the final draws closer. Danny is clearly viewed as a threat to their favourites. That or they simply find the idea of him winning a light entertainment show so abhorrent they have to yell about how terrible it'll be constantly.

I'm indifferent to Louise. She doesn't seem as into the competition like the others.

If Danny had got 10s for the Quickstep, even more people wouldn't want him to win.

There are some comments about Danny that I want to reply to but then I decide it isn't worth it.

I enjoyed the interview as well.

The AS looks good and they only started rehearsing the Salsa today, which might be why it wasn't as resolved when Ian was reviewing it. This just shows the hard work it takes each week for Danny to master each routine.

Wishing them lots of luck in rehearsals to wow us with the AS and smash that Salsa.

#InOtiWeTrust
#InDannyWeBelieve

BIB From what I have seen, people feel like she is a " novice " compared to the likes of Louise and Danny; " no dance experience "

Is it definitely a VW based AS?
Wasn't able to watch ITT, and didn't record it as I didn't realise they were on tonight.
It'll be available to download tomorrow though 👍

I enjoyed the ITT interview but I hope they don't worry two much about doing fancy lifts. They don't need to. Too often lifts look stuck in to be impressive and detract a bit, hopefully they will be classy flowy ones.

Yes, it is. Danny mentioned the fact that they had already done a VW so, it helps. Ian also said that it was unusual to do a VW AS. He said that himself and Zoe did one!!!

I do believe that the biggest problem will be time, but I hope that Danny can enjoy these two dances, without too much stress. It's almost over for them and I would hate for these last dances to be very stressful. I would love him to just go for it and not worry too much about making a mistake.

This is what I think also.........they don't need high impact lifts..........even one or two less would be fine!!! It just adds more stress.............and Oti (by her own admission) isn't light!!!! Mind you, he did make the AT lifts look effortless!!!!

Having read the ITT thread downstairs I have added another to my extensive list of ignoreds!

Jesus............certain forum members are unbelievable and incredibly boring at this stage. No wonder your ignore list is extensive. Of course, some people comment just to get a rise out of people so it really doesn't matter what you say, or how you defend..................

YouTube links for today's ITT:

https://youtu.be/dceNZC9c_Tw

https://youtu.be/7Ck3ql54wPM

Semi-final training is up on the Strictly website............sorry. I'm not good at linking stuff. Thanks nellrose for the IT2 links. Nice bit of AS footage.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04kjyv5


(The link isn't blue so you need to copy and paste it.)

Thanks for letting us know.




Claudia is going for the "I was never a good dancer" line in the video.


Danny and Oti are looking good.

A VW AS is the perfect choice for that beautiful song. The "difficult and different" lifts Oti's described could be a gamble with limited training time but if they nail both routines it will be outstanding. It's semi-finals and they're pulling out all the stops which is understandable hopefully each performance goes to plan. I wonder if their salsa was choreographed by an outside choreographer, hope the routine is top-notch if so.

The Salsa might be choreographed by Oksana's husband.

I really hope not unless he's brought his triple A game, as I've mentioned before his choreo for Ore and JR's salsa was subpar.

I would rather that Oti choreographed the routine or that she at least had some input into it. Do they have to use the outside professionals?

To be fair to him, I wouldn't judge him based on just those two dances. Danny is much better at Latin than Judge Rinder and Ore and his routine is bound to be more complex than either of theirs. He did choreograph their fabulous AT.

You are right, and Danny is at disadvantage here. Why? Because, in addition to the factors that you mentioned, there is another significant force behind his rivals. All of them have families rooted in the dance world and actively present in these forums. Joanne and Kevin's parents (former dancers) have every reason to "sink" Danny, as do AJ's parents (who danced professionally as well). They have known Len for many ages and there must be some indirect pressure on him as well. Claudia has a lot of sympathy as "underdog" but don't dismiss very ambitious and social media savvy AJ. Besides, Kevin's and AJ's partners, no doubt, root for them. All together, they may whip hysteria or support on these forums and in the media (I actually think that the two platforms are connected, and what is discussed on the forums sooner or later spills into the media and vice versa).
Danny and Oti do not play games and they don't have connection with the British dance world, and at this stage of the competition may fall victims of their own "niceness" and integrity.