https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-r...balls-campaign

I'll highlight two pieces of spin in particular.

The fist is the claim that "he just has to turn up and get through the routine" as if it doesn't matter what the routine is or how he gets through it.

The other is that Ed's survival "did cause an unfair dance-off".

(There's more, of course, such as "Claudia’s jive was close to pro level" (no, it wasn't) and praising Greg for "giving his all and creating a very sweet partnership" as if that couldn't also be said of Ed and Katya. No surprise the author (Viv Groskop) has it in for Louise (and of course she didn't mind Daisy going last week) And so on. But I don't want this post to be as long as the article.)

(I think we can be sure that if Louise ends in the dance-off Viv won't give her the " likely finalist" description she gives Claudia, even though Louise is, if anything, more likely to be one.)

ANYway, Greg and Claudia were in the dance-off because of their marks and the public's votes -- the same things faced by every contestant. Calling it "unfair" is just a way to spin your disagreement.

If we take it back a step, the cause was their dances, music, costumes, etc. I suppose a case for "unfairness" might be made there. (There are people who seem to think the producers deliberately give some contestants unsuitable music, or whatever.) But it soon starts to look like a conspiracy theory, and in any case it wouldn't mean Ed or Ed's survival was the cause of the result.

Ed isn't just turning up and getting through the routine. He and Katya have been putting in a lot of work, and it shows. He's not a great dancer, and some of their routines have been a lot better than others. But there's real effort and (at least on Katya's part) talent involved. Ed's continued survival isn't "proof that the dancing doesn’t matter"; it's proof that more than one sort of dancing can appeal to the public.

Goodness me she was saying Ed "saved 2016" last week, these people do turn on a dime when they've got copy to file.

They are scared that Ed might win?

I'm not bothered about this article. It's not written by the journalist who does the live blog at the weekend and there's plenty of support for Ed Balls from posters who comment on the blog during and after the show. It's like the live thread on here. There's plenty of recognition that Ed is actually dancing whilst making people smile. This is just a filler piece.

If you look at the recommended comments, there's little support for the writer of the piece.

Why the angst? It's click-bait.

Yes, in last week's column, it was:

"This is a man who learns a dance as if he were Hermione Granger facing expulsion from Hogwarts. And he performs it with a level of commitment matched only by a boa constrictor swallowing the last gerbil left on Earth, and with similar aesthetic qualities. The true test of any dance on Strictly is how soon and how frequently you want to rewatch it. And I can’t stop."

Now she wants a campaign against him.

I think one key difference is that last week she didn't mind that Daisy went, but now the danger's reaching contestants she cares about.

Of course, that might be happening more widely too. It's not clear how much further Ed can get.

Who is The Woman Who Writes for the Guardian and what are her qualifications? All I can see is her bias in favor of some celebrities whom SHE sees as good (or good-looking) dancers. I guess the sense of rhythm, that is absolutely essential in every dancer and that good-looking Greg does not possess, does not factor in her definition of dancing skills. What does, then? A cutesy smile? A readiness to disrobe for a selfie?

The article is nothing but tosh.

Yes it reads as someone getting a bit intemperate because their fave (Claudia) was in danger and taking it out on whoever's closest to hand, in this case Ed and to a lesser extent Louise.

I think I'd be more offended if I were Natalie, being compared to a velociraptor.

Why assume angst? It's just a forum post!


Yes, the comments are interesting.

I forgot about the Guardian live blog and haven't been following it. But looking now, I think it is pretty good, Here's the most recent one: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-r...week-nine-live

This is interesting, from the Guardian's live blog linked earlier:

"So here’s how I think tonight is going to pan out. The dance-off will most likely be two of Greg, Ore and Claudia, at which point 2016’s Strictly Backlash against Ed Balls will begin. Ed will go home next week, then it’s a battle to the final between the Ringers (Louise, Danny) and the Improvers (whoever is left of Greg, Ore, Claudia and Rinder)."

Will she (Heidi Stephens) be right? The column comments (mentioned above) suggest the backlash may not yet be strong.

Doubt the comments will bother Ed Balls......he has a skin as thick as a rhinoceros

BIB There's no denying that this is a fact.

If the judges put him last and he avoids the dance off, you could say that statement is true.
His fans are voting for him despite his regularly poorer performances than the rest who are still in. So effectively he could just walk through it all and he'll still get the votes.

I agree, and it's interesting to see the difference in attitude and approach between the columnist (Viv Groskop) and the live blogger (Heidi Stephens). I'm quite liking Heidi.

There is denying it, and I hereby deny it again.

His fans don't see his performances as poor, btw; they find his performances entertaining. And they're not voting for him despite the performances; they're voting for in (at least in part) because of the performances. There's no good reason to think that if Ed just turned up and walked through the routine, rather than dancing and performing, that they'd still vote for him.

https://twitter.com/Peston/status/800457395289944069

Ha ha ha!

He won't...but this is the same as the bile that met john sergeant when he went further than expected...much further.
I thought claudia was overmarked as lots of others on here have said. Greg, bless him, was never going to win. And tbh is anyone REALLY missing the ones that have left?

I liked Daisy, I miss her being there.

Brilliant!

Hmm..

You're obviously a fan of Ed's and "not a student of human nature, or the sheer bloody mindedness of some of the general public," are you?

Unfortunately for me this series Natalie has diminished as a pro.

I agree.

I've been giving Ed some of my free votes, and I wouldn't be doing that if I could see he wasn't putting in the effort.

He has been learning, and has a great partnership with Katya, who has been putting together entertaining routines with actual proper steps in them.

I never thought I'd be supporting Ed Balls, but I am. Outside of politics, he comes across as very likeable, something I could never have said about Widdy. That was someone who just walked through it.

The "worm" is turning on Mr Balls this week...

Articles like that only do the opposite of what they're supposed to be doing. IT only makes people root for him even more.

As hardly anybody reads the Guardian it probably doesn't matter...