2, 3, Cha Cha Cha: It's semi-final time! SCD #9

[CaveMum]

New thread

R.E. Gorka.
CCTV was reviewed and the police couldn't find any evidence of an assault/ altercation. He also didn't report to the police so they've dropped their investigations. Gorka himself hasnt actually confirmed what happened, just made a few comments on twitter saying thanks for the well wishes etc. Very strange.

VTs are the worst bit about the show. So OTT and cringe worthy. I don't know which are worse - the ones which are massively over acted, or the ones where the celeb/ partners just look like they're reading feom an autocue. Fully agree Deepan wish they'd use it to give notice overview of the dance, key steps and moves. They could ensure it doesn't get repetitive by emphasising what the couple need to work on based on previous week's performance/ judges comments.

^Strictly/Beeb said it was up to Gorka to comment. Amazed on way to a nightclub no cctv in action. Must be sodding frustrating.

Do we need a new thread ready for Saturday night? There's no way this thread will last through the Final!

If I was Gorka, I wouldn't have reported it either. He's in a foreign country, in a town that he would be leaving the following day and he had no way of identifying the culprit. Reporting it would just have been a massive and inconvenient waste of his time. Plus, if it had gone any further, he could have been forced to come back to the UK in the future to give evidence.

We definitely need a new thread for the final.

I'm worried about the showdances, based on Vicky's segment. L&K's looks like it could be a repeat of Snowdance, and Oti looks like she's thrown everything into theirs. Ojo's looks like a repeat of their top hits.

Maybe they'll surprise me.

Does anyone else feel showdances are almost always a disappointment? The only one I've actually enjoyed and go back to watching on YouTube is Tom Chambers', and that was the dance that really turned round the final for him. The other professionals really need to take lessons from Camilla about how to choreograph a showdance.

Showdances are do what you like, lifts etc. and look all wow, aren't I fab-ul-ous?
I also think they're mostly underwhelming.

There was cctv covering the area it was meant to have happened, but police couldn't find any incident. Given the rag it was reported in doesn't take a genius to concede the story could be inaccurate/ dramatised a bit....

I agree Showdances are funny ones aren't they. I usually hate them first viewing because I'm expecting so much, and generally they're never as mind blowing as I'm hoping. I couldn't tell you what any of them were like from just last year for example. Ones thst do sticknin my head aren't always for good reason - like Flackers a few years ago - just seemed to consist of her being held aloft by the lovely Pacha for ages with big bits of chiffon being wafted around her head. I remember sat there thinking when's something else going to happen.

Aaaaagggghhhh! I've just realised I'm at my parents' house tomorrow. I don't think they're Strictly fans.

Arse!!!!

Nothing was more underwhelming than Jay and aliona's showdance which was just a "greatest hits" of moves they'd done in their previous dances. Utterly dull, why wouldn't you put something new in apart from laziness and/or arrogance?

I agree about the show dances- I hate that they throw everything at it so it becomes disjointed and one trick after another with minimal dance content in it. I can imagine Danny and Oti's is going to be a bit like that

Tom Chambers' was so good because it was an actual themed dance which showed off his strengths. Jay's last year was particularly underwhelming

Can someone remind me about Snowdance? Have seen loads of references to it and have watched it but what was so wrong with it??

mrsjamin x-post. Since Jay could have come on the floor, sat down and not moved for 90 seconds and still won, the showdance was irrelevant really. However I am still frustrated about it as he was such a good dancer, it could have been mind-blowing

I watched ITT and wondered if the training segment for Danny & Oti showed them practising the AT, ie the Judge's choice, and not the showdance? I do have high expectations for their showdance though. Oti's choreography is outstanding. I don't think she'll let us down when given a free rein.

I'm going to be livid if L&K win. Watching KFG punch the air one more time is going to make me punch the telly vomit.

The past winners were saying on ITT they think it's going to be Louise because of her 'journey', but she's had as much bloody dance experience as Danny. I was a bit at Louise's ballet shoes for their showdance? Isn't ballet what she's actually properly trained in anyway? Darcey will like that, forgetting that it's a Latin and Ballroom competition.

I've not been on the winning side of anything I've voted on/ backed this year, so fully expect it not to be Danny & Oti. So I'll take Ore and Joanne if it has to be a Clifton. She has done wonders with him from a teaching perspective.

The basic problem with Snowdance was that Brendan wasn't quite strong enough to pull it off (apparently) effortlessly which is key to those big flashy lifts - and Lisa didn't have quite the skill required to play her part (and was also a strapping six footer - most showdance champion women are teeny). Every time he went to lift her I could hear in my mind a deep intake of breath and the words "and.....heave!"

Have a look at James and Denise's showdance for how that sort of thing is supposed to be done (still didn't help them of course).

Im still bitter Caroline(dance degree) flack won Frankie Bridge was robbed ! I am going to be meh tomorrow night nobody to get excited about.

Yes, the dodgy lifts were definitely part of it. The other bit was the crazy, crazy outfit (bacofoil, as they call it on Monkseal). That was the first final I watched and I was agog. And then Tom & Camilla came out with that fun, showy dance and that was me hooked on the show.

Oh yes to a new thread CaveMum
I'm gearing up for tomorrow - I have the evening to myself ( I have gallantly said it's okay for DH to go out , and leave me at home :) )
poor Soup mmm - could you ask for an early Christmas Treat to watch it?
I want a Showdance with joy in it , not loads of show off stuff .

I think Danny & Oti are the ones with the capacity to do a proper jaw dropping show dance. He does go on a lot though about how long it takes him to learn things fully so I worry that a three dance week may mean that the show dance doesn't get the time it needs. I know two of the dances are ones he's done before but they will still need to put some time in on those.

Personally, I'd love their judges pick to be their cha cha cha from the early weeks. It was v good but I'd love to see how much better he can do it. I think it would be a canny choice to show he has actually got quite a lot better.

Did anyone see Oti saying on ITT that she had lost one of her contact lenses before last Saturday and did that big last jump with v blurred vision!!!

The Showdances are always pretty underwhelming unfortunately. The only ones that stick out for me are Alesha, Darren G, Tom Chambers and Mark Ramprakash.

I used to like it when they brought in the World Show Dance Champions to give a demo in the semi-final. Although they were always all about lifts and gymnastics, they were very impressive.

Like this one from Victor da Silva and Hanna Karttunen (who came second in Series 1 with Chris Parker)

Did anyone see Oti saying on ITT that she had lost one of her contact lenses before last Saturday and did that big last jump with v blurred vision

No, I haven't been watching ITT. I usually start watching it 3 or 4 weeks before the final, but I can't summon up my usual enthusiasm for it this year. I do think Oti's amazing, though, and to do that jump under any conditions would have meant she had an astonishing level of trust in Danny - to do it missing a contact lens, wow. I love Monkseal's take on her. I agree that they're the couple with the capacity to pull off a jaw-dropping show dance. Louise and KFG will probably do something that involves lots of gurning, and Ore will do something 'romantic' at the end of which he'll be snivelling into a hanky.

Soup, is this the time to get your parents hooked on Strictly?

I frequently do large jumps with blurred vision

And I think we should have Cave on ITT doing her own Cave's Choreography Corner. Karen can move to the Sat show.

mornington they do allow us to watch the Christmas special so there is a chance!

Did anyone see Oti saying on ITT that she had lost one of her contact lenses before last Saturday and did that big last jump with v blurred vision

Wow. Respeck.