SCD '23 #19: In which we're crowning our Strictly champion!

[PolkadotsAndMoonbeams]

Previous thread here.

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Nikita was 2nd on CBB!

Still feel ambivalent to his appearance (and pray he won't make the AJ/Curtis Pritchard mistake of thinking he's bigger than the show) but his sense of fashion makes modelling a decent side hustle.
We took the piss at the time that his cream/ivory ruffle on his entrance looked like a giant scrunchie on his shoulder. His "matching look" on his exit yesterday
was cream/ivory ribbon as a tie.
The photos give neither look justice.
Whilst he does not do it for me personally, I can see him do fashion. He has that Harry Styles femme/gender bending thing going on.

I agree @SequinsandStiIettos - could never understand AJ leaving other than he must have believed his own hype!

Good luck to Nikita!

While I agree that AJ seemed to think a couple of years on Strictly made him a full fledged celebrity, I do think he was a bit unlucky because he left Strictly just before the pandemic. With different timing there might have been more opportunities open to him.

Potentially, although Kevin Clifton left at the same time and has, arguably, made a bigger name for himself.

He was a silver fox recently. Now appearing in Jamie musical.

This is going to make me sound really daft but I've been trying to figure out why I used to not like Nikita then started to like him in recent years. It's because IT WAS AJ I DIDNT LIKE!

I didn't like AJ either @MeinKraft !

Yes but Kevin already had the fan base so was always going to do well. AJ didn’t so he needed to capitalise on Strictly immediately which he couldn’t do due to the pandemic and by the time that was over everyone had forgotten him, whereas we all still remembered Kevin!

I thought that AJ and Curtis wanted to do presenting.
They weren't a double or triple threat as they can only dance, whereas Kev and his sister can arguably act/sing, as well as dance, at least good enough for musical theatre standard.
Kevin iirc also podcasts/has his wrestling hobby/has a side hustle with Tommy Franzen flipping houses or used to, something in the housing market.
The Pritchards had a foray into acting - Hollyoaks - which sank them. I don't know what they're doing now.

I remember he didn't seem to like any of his dance partners and I've struggled to work out why I thought Nikita didn't like his dance partners the first few years when he's such a nice bloke and it was two entirely separate people, I'm an idiot AJ had a face like a slapped arse when he was paired with his very first partner I remember that now!

Plus I suppose Kevin must be about 40 now so he would have had to think about doing something else anyway, a dancers career is quite short isn't it? AJ was way too young to jack it in.

Didn't Brenda say he caught AJ and Mollie snogging?!
So he couldn't have hated all his partners.
I think he just didn't love them as much as he seemed to love himself.
His track record was actually very good and none of his partners have ever said anything negative about him. To make the semis three years in a row, your first three series, is good going tbf.

Claudia made the semis (4th)
Mollie made the semis (5th)
Lauren made the semis (5th)
Saffron (week 10)

AJ:
He's 29 now so was only 25 when he left in 2019.
2016-19
2018 Celeb Masterchef/Hunted
2019 RuPaul's Drag Race (one episode)
2020 IACGMOOH
2021 Hollyoaks
2022 Celeb SAS
2023 The Challenge UK (Channel 5)

Curtis:
He's just turned 28 and was only 22 when beaten so badly he couldn't do a third series of DWTS in 2019.
2017-18 DWTS Ireland (attacked 2018)
2019 Love Island
2019 The boxer and the ballroom dancer
2019 RuPaul's Drag Race (one episode)
2020 The Greatest Dancer (receptionist)
2020 Celebs go dating
2021 Hollyoaks
2021 Stand up and deliver
2023 The Challenge UK (Channel 5)
2023 Love Island games

It's a shame really. You have Ant and Dec, Bradley and Barney, Rochelle and Marvin. You'd have thought there'd be space on the schedule for the two of them to have presented something or been on the Masked Dancer panel. Oti took that space (that and DOI have done well for her but Romeo and Duet was dire).

Hannah Waddingham rumoured to be doing Strictly. She's 5ft 11 so one for Kai if rumours end up being true.
Michael Sheen said he'd be too scared to do Strictly in an interview this evening.
Chloe Hewitt's now engaged.
Oh and whilst I know drag is unpopular on MN, just saw all Blu Hydrangea's dances on youtube (they came second on DWTS Ireland this year) and they were very good indeed, as was their pro Simone Arena.

If she does it then dh will watch this year!

Gorka was on the travel programme with Anton and Giovanni. They went surfing and Gorka in a wetsuit was a sight to behold 😍🪭

Do you remember the sequence in (I think) 2020 where Gorka, Giovanni and Alijaz were all being James bond? Gorka emerged from the sea in blue trunks a la Daniel Craig.

Is Kai that tall? I didn’t realise that. Somehow he doesn’t look tall, if that’s not a daft thing to say.
I'm 5’ 10” and always think there’s no men on Strictly tall enough for me.

I also wouldn't have put Kai as one of the tall ones .

I had to look up the heights.

He is 6 foot .

If my calculations are right ? 🤔🤔...

But as a short arse of 5 foot ... everyone is 6 foot to me !! 😅

I just googled and got 6’ 2”, so tall enough for me and (just) for Hannah W.
So that’s good to know for when Strictly come begging me 😃

If Hannah W does do it and is paired with Kai (which seems the most likely pairing) it will be a bit of a tongue twister for poor Alan Dedicoat!

Only 5 months to wait !! 😅😅

Hannah Waddingham would be an excellent signing!

Hannah Waddingham and her dance partner, Kai Widdrington. It's a mouthful!