The link is way too long and complicated to post, and I don't know how to do it, but Craig Revel Horwood has had a right go at Patsy Palmer in today's Daily Mirror. He refers to her as a two bit actress from a second rate soap, but does say she has scrubbed up well for the show from being a scrubber in a silver puffa jacket. He took exception to her ITT comments about the judges - we knew they would have to come back to haunt her.

Having said that, he has judged Patsy twice since then and his comments were generally fair, but it's not brilliant to have a judge in a competition shouting his mouth off to the national press.

Mind you , there are some howlers in the article - it says that Anton is 22 and misspells Craig's own name at times.

To get to it go to www.mirror.co.uk and you'll find it under today's showbiz news, quite far down.

Oh yes, it's that tome of truth the Mirror again

How exactly are we supposed to read anything they print if they can't get the name of the man they supposedly interviewed right? And as for Anton being 22.......

Mwhahahahaha!!!!!!

Sorry Anton, I love you dearly, but if he is 22 then he's two years younger than me and must've had some tough life

To be it looks like another Frankenstein article....Got no news? Well just butcher quotes taken entirely out of content, stick them together and voila! You have 'news' story. (Of course if you can't find quotes you want, making them up will do just fine)

Although from an Anton fan's pov this may just do them a favour if some people read it and think 'Poor Patsy, that nasty judge is just being mean to her. I'll vote for her now!'

Ta Daily Mirror

There's a direct click through HERE

Oh dear.

I really don't know what to make of that. On the one hand it's pretty spiteful and unpleasant...but on the other it's so badly written I do wonder how credible it is.

If it IS true then Craig is not doing himself, Patsy or SCD any favours - it seems very ill advised. I think a lot of what she said about the judges three weeks ago was silly, but probably without the malicious intent that Craig implies.

As for Anton being 22.....well.....I've never had a toyboy!

Well, I have never like Patsy Palmer, I find her stuck up, self obsorbed and arrogant, and she probably deserves what she gets.
If there is any truth to the story, then I certainly know which side I'm on. You just don't argue with the professionals - the people who know best.

Just get her off the programme, although it could be quite interesting viewing if this is the start of a major (or even minor) conflict.

I'd say that was spot on. I've thoroughly enjoyed Patsy and Anton. Patsy may not be the best dancer, or the world's best diplomat, but there's never a dull moment when she's around!

Now magazine has Anton at a more credible 42.

The Mirror story is probably loosely based on something, although I am the last one to believe everything I read in the papers. I've been to enough events which have been reported by the press and I've thought "Were they at the same place?"

If Craig did say these things, then I think it's inappropriate. He is judging them every week, and he's slagged her off while praising the others. He has clearly compromised his position. However, he has judged her twice since she developed her ITT Foot in Mouth disease and has been fair.

Claire might have a point about it doing them some good, which can't be bad.

It wasn't malicious at all on her part. Definitely another case of Patsy opening mouth before engaging brain It was one of my favourite moments of this series, Patsy realising what she said and trying to dig herself out of a hole only to go deeper and deeper, Claudia in hysterics, Anton absolutely mortified....

She honestly didn't know what the others had done before and just said she was really pleased with the comments from Len because he was the only one she knew to be a proper ballroom/latin judge.

I've just had another thought (after noticing that DS are reporting it at the top of my screen!), that this is very much tit for tat, if indeed Craig has said these things.

Craig is not an actor and Patsy is not a dancer. From that point of view, neither has the right to criticize what the other has done in their professional lives in the past, but what stings me slightly is that Patsy made a generalisation and Craig has gone for the jugular, so to speak. Patsy is not actually Bianca, she was playing a character, not playing herself. It is cruel of him to pick up on such a stereotypical example of work she has done, and if I do say so myself, a bit unoriginal.

Although, Kelpy, looking back at Bianca and what we've seen from Patsy, I can see some similarities.

Oh yes...there definitely are some!

What I meant is more to do with the context of the article...I don't think Patsy is actually "a scrubber in a puffa jacket who cries all the time", as Craig implies. He's talking about Bianca, not Patsy.

Although to be fair to Craig, he said she's scrubbed up well for someone who used to look like Bianca.

Maybe he's missing his verbal confrontations with Julian and so is trying to pick a fight with Patsy instead...

Maybe it is a sneaky tactic on his behalf to try and get more people to vote for Patsy because he wants them to stay in...

Anton at least 42 my brother who danced against him is 42 and I thought Anton was older he certainly looks older than my brother

As far as I'm aware Anton is 42. It's certainly about the age I would have guessed for him.

I thought Patsy's comments were valid. She said that Len was the only real ballroom dancing judge there and the others weren't

Sorry but the others may be "dancers" but they aren't ballroom dancers and I hate the way CRH and Arlene harp on about commitment/ passion/ hard work etc - they'd be fair if these guys were professional dancers, looking for a career in the field - but they aren't - and to be honest when you see that standard these celebs have reached in a couple of months its astounding - most dancers would take years to be as good as Zoe or Colin. I think Len's getting tired of the constant put downs they dish out too

Give the celebs a break from the acid comments and as the song say "accentuate the positive - disregard the negative" Craig and particularly Arlene rarely have anything kind or really constructive to say

my mum used to say if you can't say anything nice don't say anything at all

I see Rita Skeeter has had her magic pencil out again...

Blatant custard tactics.

There does seem to have been a shift from constructive criticism to telling them how awful they are full stop. They seem to have stopped telling the celebrities what they need to work on or how they could improve (aside from passion and story blah, blah, blah).

The shift seems to be in Craig and Arlene. Craig was Mr Mean last year, this he seems to have toned down some what. He's just honest and 9/10 he'll be constructive in his criticism. Arlene on the other hand has just got really vicious for no apparent reason. Perhaps she found out that the polls always put her as the least favourite judge and is trying to do a Simon Cowell.

Well let's be honest like X Factor judges resigning, Craig Revel Wotsisface has a right go at the celebs in SCD, I had thought he was on tranquilisers the last few weeks on the show, being far too nice in his comments. For Gawds sake I was ranting at Bill more.

So he has been bottling it up and has let rip in the Daily Mirror, I just hope it makes him feel better and he is prepared to defend/back his comments up when the time comes.

It is dissappointing, in that if he thinks that Patsy is a pseudo cockney sparra with the ability of a one legged duck and the looks of the rear of a 92 bus, I expect him to say it on the panel and be prepared to accept the consequences and flying rotten fruit, not skulk in a publication midweek with plenty of opportunity to say 'he's sorry', 'his comments were taken out of context', or plain 'He never said that anyway', finalising it with 'he think Patsy has worked so hard and her attitude is refreshing to anyone used to stuffy Ballroom world.'

Coward.

I honestly can't understand why Craig would say what he has been quoted as saying. He seems so happy-go-lucky behind the scenes and professional on ITT and on Saturday nights, he doesn't resort to personal insults usually. I have a lot of respect for him.

It just doesn't seem to fit somehow, but The Mirror can't completely fabricate a story like that, there must be something rooted in truth. It's very puzzling. The only theories I can produce are:
1) he genuinely feels that way about Patsy
2) he's trying to get a bit of publicity for SCD, to counter the 'Louis has Quit' stories
3) he reckons that any publicity is good publicity, and hopes to drum up some sympathy support for Patsy

Craig will be on Thursday's ITT probably and hopefuly Claudia will ask the difficult questions.

it always amazes me how people expect the judges to be able to 'dance' some of the very best teachers in the modern and latin world never competed to any high level and some not at all. and as seen on the show some competitive dancers make lousy teachers.

the judges have a valid dancing background even if not a formal modern and latin one but they would know the style and what it is about or they would not be judging - Len is most famous in the dance world for his abilities in freestyle disco and he was a exhibition competitor so they have many strings to their bows

I wouldn't put it past them!

Although Simon Cowell is actually quite popular these days and his views are usually evidence based rather than bashing for bashing's sake.

I don't think Arlene is anywhere in his league.

I totally agree happyfeet - Craig doesn't usually get personal. One of the reasons he got so upset with Julian last year was that he would criticise Julian's dancing (which is after all what he is paid to do, even though he could be nicer about it sometimes) and Julian would make it personal by calling him 'a sily old queen' or similar.

This year Craig seems to generally have been much nicer and founs some positives. Unless of course your Fiona Phillips and can't dance for toffee!