Although I agree that Rachel probably should win, its actually Tom's performances that have sparkle and that makes me vote for him each week and I'm a straight man

Please don't say that. I am a Lisa and Brendan fan and I (and most of the people on their appreciation threads) would never say something like this. I want the final to be between the best dancers. IMO that is Tom and Lisa, but I can fully understand that not everybody feels the same.

Please don't tar us with the same brush!

Most of the people I talk think she`s by far the best dancer yet admit they`ll vote and support Tom because his dancing is more enjoyable to watch.

That is a really unfair thing to say SCD O,there is an implication in there that I really don't like.(sorry if I'm reading something in there that wasn't at all intended) I am a Lisa & Brendan fan and as Cassie said most of the people on their appreciation would never say anything like that. I think all the remaining couples deserve to be in the final and although Rachel is not personally my cup of tea I would be as happy to see her in the final as I would Tom or Lisa.
Last edited by allisonbm2 : 11-12-2008 at 17:12

Hmmm...Well if it's true that Lisa has a higher public vote than Rachel I think you'll have to get used to the idea of Tom making the final and avoiding the dance-off altogether, as I just can't see L+B finishing above R+V, particularly as Vincent is the AT specialist amongst the last 3 pro's and their training already looked pretty sharp to me last night If that is the case, Tom only has to turn up to go through

R+V 3+1=4
L+B 2+2=4
T+C 1+3=4

...Rachel and Lisa dance-off with probably Lisa leaving

Am with you there nancy1975! I thought the OP's comments were absolutely insulting to the voting public!

I actually don't mind who wins - but like others of you, think that any single one of them would be a deserving winner now.

Don't see exactly how it will be bad for SCD if he gets through to the final - if he gets voted in there, then it simply means people WANT him there!

And anyway, in my humble opinion, he seems to my uneducated eye to be the best natural dancer.

Ill advised and insulting comments.

And how could Rachel be sure she won on merit or because Lisa was less popular. However were Rachel to win against Tom she would know she had won on ability.

I think Tom will win it.

But I really hope it's Lisa or Rachel. Will never happen, though.

You know what you're saying?! You can't let the public have say in who THEY want in a final! When did that strange idea start?

Each team has one female and one male in it so surely us silly, biased females will even things out!!!!

I know who ever would have thought it!

aw....I dunno.........just some crack head idea I just came up with

Of course the public's record in the past when they've been allowed to vote proves that they cannot be trusted at all. Not at all.

Same here. I'm another straight man who votes for Tom..my wife votes for Rachel, so that upsets the supposed "gender vote theory" a little.
I just dont think Rachel has any charisma, she is technically excellent but fails to impress me with her performance.
I like Lisa but could never vote for anyone with Brendan as a partner..one thing my wife and I do agree on.

Wait a minute...I think I saw something about this on QI...

I want an unpredictable final. Unlike many here who dont like uncertainity and excitment and would rather see a procession.

I would rather it be Lisa vs Rachel or Actually Tom vs Austin.

Tom in the final would be the most obvious winner ever in SCD and may I another winner who was not the best dancer

Only if you want a long drawn out minute of suspense at the end

It doesn't really matter who wins.What we want is a decent compettion for the other 89 or whatever minutes. If Tom wins for being better it will be fine. If he wins and they don't tell us the vote and the dancing is arguable we won't know anything different. If he is notably worse than a girl and still wins some of us will conclude with you that its got more to do with sex than dancing and we missed the real compettion by not having the other girl there..

The problem is going to be that who goes is going to be dependant on who gets what dance and what music , which judge finds a 10 paddle and who the public have taken an irrational dislike or like or feeling of complete ambivalence to. Thats the shame because anyone of the three could win the final

Kelly was out before the quarter final


I agree with your comments re Rachel. I think she's technically excellent but she does nothing for me when she dances. Like you I like Lisa but I don't think I can vote for anyone with Brendan - I came close to it 2 shows ago but in the end I just couldn't do it.

Re the OP's post - I've supported 2 female celebs (Alesha, Denise) and 2 male celebs (Ramps, Colin) in 4 series. This series I've had many favourites and they've been an equal male/female mix - Cherie, Heather, Jodie, John, Austin & Tom. I've never fancied anyone on Strictly, not even any of the pros, so that never influences me. I want Tom to win as he's the only one of the final 3 whose dancing interests me, who has been marked fairly most of the time, and who isn't being propped up by the judges.

Such a shame we've been deprived of an Austin/Tom final but hey ho.

Judging by most of the comments on here, the votes for Tom are hardly from biased female voters. :yawn:

Throughout this competition I have voted mostly for the women (Heather, Jodie, Cherie and Rachel) and last year Alesha. Sweeping generalisations never cover the reasons why people vote for whoever they choose, however there does seem to be an element of desperation and panic amongst the Rachel supporters some of whom also appear to assume she will get through to the final and be perfect, but will lose because of public choice not being the same as them.

The previously best and/or most popular can have a bad week and lose out like Cherie, Jodie and Austin.

Until the finalists have earned their place by either pleasing the Judges (highest probability of success) or the public (place could also depend on the judges), danced their dances and the votes counted nothing is written in stone.

I for one will support Lisa if Tom goes because she manages to transmit her enjoyment of the dance through the TV screen nearly as well as Tom (IMHO), which is what entertains me about SCD.

As a female I have to agree with you - I detest all other females and find them not worthy of their place in the world.

Lisa v rachel - rachel would walk it so imho its far more predictable than Tom v Rachel

Any uncertainty was knocked out of SCD6 by the judges, with their open favouritism - and none of that was directed at Tom. The certainty is that Rachel will be top of the leader board on Saturday - a predictable procession engineered by the judges.

You may like the idea of Lisa vs Rachel, but it would be a major kick in the audience's teeth, depriving them of yet another of their favourites and sending a clear signal that the public vote counts for nothing. It would damage the show long term and people would stop voting, or even stop watching. After all, how many times have Rachel and Lisa been in the dance-off between them? If you like them, fine - but they clearly aren't big with the majority of viewers.

If you don't like the idea of Tom being an obvious winner, you should lobby to get the rules changed. The judges' blatant bias has spoiled this year's Strictly and left us with one contestant the public like and two most of them aren't interested in. Removing the viewers' favourite will only result in nothing but one big :yawn: ...

Totally agree with that post Servalan

And maybe, this is a wild and wacky theory, they will vote for who they think dance's the best.

I should have said I didn't vote for Gethin until the quarter! Duh. Sorry. I think I voted for Kelly for her AS which was magnificent despite Brendan and Bruno spoiling it, and her jive.

Equally, I think a Tom/Austin final being as they have two very different styles and dances would have been genuinely exciting and possibly the very first final where I wouldn't have predicted the winner.

The reason why Rachel might top the judges leaderboard is that she might well outperform everyone else. its not engineered - except by who does better and who has a bad night. I doubt if Len and Craig fixed it months ago for some people to get lousy music and poor dances in the wrong weeks.


The rules don't need changing. All the rules do is stop the most popular dancer getting to the final automatically if he is worst on the night. He gets through if he is second or better or if the best dancer is the least popular. A top dancer who is second with the public ought by any logic to go through easier than someone who danced weakest and who ought to face the dance off. The worst dancer going in the dance off idea is there to ensure that the final isn't between the best and worst or the best dancer sits out the final and makes it pointless. Thats logical too. All the most popular dancer has to do is not be worst - which isn't much to ask someone who will otherwise win.

Not necessarily. If Lisa goes, Rachel is likely to pick up some votes from her supporters. Also, in the final there will be more floating voters who will vote for the performance on the night.
I think its a bit of a myth that any of the contestants have a huge fan base, it may appear that way in this forum with the so called " appreciation threads " etc.. but not out in the real world.
I think with Austin gone the best final would be Tom/Rachel..they have contrasting styles and strengths.
Rachel v Lisa would be an emphasis on ballroom, maybe even the same dances... therefore, rather dull in my opinion.