I think we all would agree the female pro's have a far more difficult task in getting a lot of the males up to scratch compared to the males.
When you think of some of the big sportsmen they have to move around the floor and get them nimble on their feet I think the female pro's have done a magnificient job on SCD.
Plus they also have to get the male to lead, which can be difficult for a beginner.

also the female pro's have to 'disguise' the fact that more often than not they are leading the male celebs round the floor rather than the other way round!

^ All very true, but the male pros have it tough in Latin though, as the female pros can do a lot of frills to make routines look really good and cover up for their male.

ALL of the pro's have a tough job.

I'd agree with all of the above - though I do think that the difficulty of getting the men to look good is balanced against a bias in some of the voting audience that tend to be more forgiving of the men if they are a little clumsy. Has a woman 'journey' ever got near the final (I didn't see series 1)?

(I generally avoid saying anything I think people might be offended by on here, just because I don't like the agro, but for me the constrast is I think all the current women pros concentrate on making their partners look as good as possible and keeping the focus on them, while some (not all) of the men are thinking about being personalities and getting more famous out of this and how they are going to look. And personally I think that pays off for the women pros in the competition because it makes them better teachers, though maybe in long term career terms the men are wiser.) See I've posted that and now I feel bad that it's unfair - I think that is more of an element with some of the men than any of the women, and perhaps that's just fair enough - it is a tough career after all.

^ You should feel free to say what you like jtnorth! I do agree with you. That is one of the reasons why I like Matthew Cutler so much, as it is always just about making his partner look as good as possible. (IMHO)

I also think there are some outstanding female teachers on the show!

The female pros have a harder job than the male pros

To be honest I think it would be hard either way.
BUT seeing as the man is supposed to lead I would say it would be harder for the female pros...
Also I get the impression it's generally harder for the guys to 'let go' so to speak because they think they look stupid etc, and they find that bit harder to overcome (I know a lot of females have similar insecurities but not to the same extent I don't think) but I could imagine it would be hard for the pro to have to constanly reassure them etc.

I think the female pros have a much harder job.

From the beginning when they have to get the man's posture and hold and leading abilities right in the Ballroom, and get a bit of hip action and performance level visible in the Latin, right up to the Final, if they make it, when they have to be fearless enough to be lifted by their novice male partners in spectactular lifts for the Showdance!

Generally speaking most women, whatever their age, have danced as children or like dancing, even if it's only at a party or disco, and especially in the Ballroom, they are always led, so it's much easier.
Ian said in series 3 he choreographed Zoe's VW in 10 mins "and I told her, just follow me".

Definitely easier for the men pros as they can lead - Anton with Kate is a prime example he does his best with her but you could see in the Quickstep and to a lesser extent the Tango that he was dragging her round the floor with him, and she wasn't really helping him much. He was doing it with most of his partners, but it was much less obvious than this series. Much much harder for a female pro to do that

A woman "J"? Well believe it or not I think Natasha came the closest in Series 1. There was a point (Samba I think) where she suddenly "got it" and started to enjoy herself rather than feel embarassed.

Think all the pros have a tough job but looking back at the past series of SCD it would appear that there have been more male celebs who've had to go on the 'journey.' The female celebs seem to have been more fit and with some dance training. Also, it's easier for the male pros to 'lead' their celeb through the routines.

At first thought it would seem that the women have a more difficult job.
Lots of times on SCD you see the male celeb go out and try very hard to do the steps and lead the dance. It is glaringly obvious even to people that are not in the know technically when the male celeb makes a mistake.
When the female celebs come out to dance, you will often see the male pro move them into the correct position - and with some of the celebs it is easier than with others and even the judges don't comment on it. It seems to be easier for the male dancers to disguise their partners mistakes. I am talking about smaller positioning mistakes not great big glaring turned in the wrong direction type mistakes.
Another thing is that lots of the female celebs, even the ones that have no dance training will know some of the basics like ball changes etc from doing exercise classes. Don't mean to sound sexist, but from my experience, women way outnumber men going to classes at the gym - especially any dancey ones. Most of the men that go to classes opt for Body Pump or Spinning.
I saw Brendon sort of drag Kelly several times in her first dance and her tango to get her in the right spot. It was not an obvious movement and Brendan made it look like it was a part of the plan (sort of). The female pros just can't physically do this without it being very obvious.
Once the male celebs manage to survive a few weeks and have learned a few basics, I think the female pros have an easier job especially with the sports types because they are used to taking criticism and advice on improving what they are doing.
The above was not a dig at Kelly/Brendan - just the one that came to mind.

It was so nice to see a clip of that dance on ITT tonight, I love that song, and remember it well.

That first series looks so innocent now, it just developed as it went along, rather than starting off with a bang and hype like now, and I defo agree with you Caro, NK had a J.

I love seeing little Ola whipping big boy Kenny into shape

Id say the female pros have a harder job as the males are supposed to lead but as there partners arent professional its harder for them to lead

The female pro's have it harder as at least the male pro's can move their partner around the floor if mistakes are made. I'd like to have seen Lilia try that with Darren or Matt, or Ola try it with Kenny.