Ashley Roberts on Strictly Come Dancing

[Smellbellina]

She’s ruining my enjoyment! She’s a professional dancer and it’s very obvious. It’s like a professional ice skater competing on Dancing on Ice, why??

I also don't like watching her - of course she's very good, but she's a professional, her reactions and faux shock at being praised etc grind me. She has zero chemistry with Pasha too.
And she was a judge on Dancing with the Stars or something.

But saying that, I loved jay McGuinness and Aliona, and he was a trained dancer. But he was pretty unassuming and shy about it, and the chemistry between him and Aliona made me want them to win.

Is Scarlett Moffatt a professional dancer??

For me, the thing about Ashley in particular is that she seems to have a quite a lot more dance experience than some of the previous ringers, she's danced since she was three (probably earlier than some of the pros, different style or not!) and has judged dance related shows. It's another level compared to the usual and while she's very, very good it makes it seems a lot less sporting than the ringers normally do.

She shouldn't be there
Watching her makes me cold she is a professional dancer

Some dance training doesn't make you a ringer but this is ridiculous

Brucie used to make a real dog's breakfast over pronouncing some of the professionals names but he wasn't seeing them everyday. Surely if she can pronounce her own name, she can pronounce Pasha - it's the same sound.

As an aside - I enjoyed Tess snarling 'we're live' tonight at anyone who was taking too long over kissing and hugging the backing dancers

As another aside - someone told me that Ashley wasn't a first choice contestant for this series - because she is such an obvious ringer - probably the ringiest ringer of all time - but someone dropped out and she was called up, so kudos to her if that is the case, she must know she won't win. Going to be interesting if she and Faye are the bottom two in the semi final - the judges will implode.

I hope Stacey or Joe win. They’re both so determined, positive and up for it, and improve week by week.

^ this

I hadn't heard of Joe before Strictly, but he seems a nice lad and Stacey is always really likeable in her documentaries. I love to see people who have never danced before growing in confidence and love for dance. They're both discovering a talent that they didn't know they had.

I'm glad that I'm not the only one who doesn't like Ashley. I enjoy watching her dances as she's so talented but find her really irritating to listen to.

Nah I said she could be on a show of just ringers...she, like Ray, has done ballroom before which is why many have said she won't ever be signed for SCD despite being a popular draw for some viewers...you can be stage school trained, a former ballet dancer, have appeared in musicals, have dancer on your cv....but if you have had ballroom lessons that's where they draw the line

Sorry, that was about Scarlett M.
I am still desperate for Daniel Mays to go on. He has breakdancing on his CV...

I read that kurri - Stefania Aleksander took over from Vinnie Shergill as sleb booker for this year (and presumably knew AR from I'm a celeb days?) and Ashley was quoted as saying they had reached out kind of last minute.

They’ve had so many quasi-ringers on over the years that I’ve made my personal cut-off the Passport Test. If you’ve ever had “Dancer” as your profession on your passport then you’re a copper-bottomed ringer. By my count that qualifies Debbie, Danny JJ, and Ashley, but the first two had been working in other professions for thirty years when they appeared on Strictly.

Personally I didn’t think Ashley’s jive was all that, but the problem was the choreography not her skills, which are impeccable. Not gonna vote for her though.

She's an uber ringer but there's no way she'll win. It'll be Stacey or Joe.

I love watching her though, she's such a performer.

She always seems last down the stairs when the programme starts and seems to end the show. The BBC are really pushing her. She will be in the final with Faye, Stacey and Joe. Joe will win because he has a mahoosive fan base who will be diligently voting. I don't mind Ashley, she is a sweet woman, but I do not want her to win.

I would love to see Stacey win because she's one of my favourite famous people and I'd really like to see Kevin win. I think he's a good teacher as well as a good dancer. My dd is so excited about Joe so we've been voting for the pair of them all the way through. We'll cancel each other out in the final!

I looked up how to pronounce Pasha in Russian, it's official you can now find ANYTHING on the internet. Anyway it turns out that nobody is pronouncing it correctly, not Strictly, not his girlfriend, not Ashley, although IMO Ashley is very slightly closer than anyone else.

Mind you they mangle a lot of other names too, they're still saying Giovanni with a hard G and rhyming the first syllable of Oti with 'oat' rather than 'hot'.

And that's just his middle name - his full name is Pavel Pasha Kovalev (overinvested? Moi!?)

Joe will win because he has a mahoosive fan base who will be diligently voting.

I don't know about this. I'm not sure what percentage of his fan base would bother their arse voting on strictly. Whereas Stacey is potentially more popular with the core strictly audience.

I'm not sure how it will pan out, but I'd bet the farm on it being one of these two.

I thought Pasha was a diminutive for Pavel - like Sasha or Misha in Russian nicknames ?

I did run a few Irish names through that YouTube channel, just to check that they are doing it authentically. If they can get Caoimhe and Saidhbh correct (which they can) then they are probably right about the pronunciation of Pasha.

I thought the lovely Kate Silverton dress was dreadful tonight, the back looked like folds of skin hanging off her. Costume s usually brillia t.

So is Fay Tozer.

That jive was phenomenal. It was amazing to watch.
Those of you who think that all dance styles are talking rubbish. Ballroom and Latin are dance sport. It's nothing like the kind of dance you learn at stage school.

I love watching Ashley.
I danced from 5 years old to the age of 18. My parents still dance now. I have a photo of me with Shirley Ballas, taken when I was 6. I hate watching the clompy comedy ones. I think I should have been born in the USA. I don't hate the pretty ones either.

The back was skin folds Bahhh, I watched it again on YouTube. I suspect that she had to have her ribs taped up again and that's why the skin tone bit was tight.

I meant to say ' those of you who think all dance styles are the same are talking rubbish'.

I'm also laughing at people's perceptions of stage school.

I'd like Stacey or Charles to win. More down to earth and real people.

Ashley leaves me unmoved. And Joe - I dont know why they rave about him so much - too skinny and loopy. And he looks so awful all made up. And I've never liked Faye - I dont know why.

I have a very big soft spot for Alijaz despite his totally over the top gurning....