Strictly 2025 : Week Five. Can anything be as Iconic as the Tess/Claude duo? NO SPOILERS. 18.25PM

[EineReiseDurchDieZeit]

Getting it ready early as I am out this afternoon.

KEEP DANCING

I took the impression that Layton was a bit of a nightmare who wanted to do things HIS way and didn’t listen when it came to specific techniques. A couple of times when he got feedback he admitted that he hadn’t listened to Nikita.

i think the lifts looked awful.
its great that SCD is being inclusive. but imo she is not good. amazing energy and lovely. but not good.

I think there's a difference between having some dance lessons at drama school and actually having a career in musical theatre, with significant experience.

No, she's having a good time, but won't get much further.

I wonder if the judges will get rid of Amber if/when she ends up in the bottom two again, especially if it happens soon? Knowing viewers aren’t impressed with a polished performer knocking out the Jimmies in the competition, they might send her home to avoid the backlash.

I just think the "celeb pool" isnt that huge you are going to get better dancers than others, and complaining about it seems pointless it is a Saturday night dance programme it isn't that deep.

Every year you get celebs having to justify that they did dance a teenager but they are not professional which is the criteria for contestants as long as you are not a professional Ballroom dancer.

I think that's one thing, but earning a living by being in "9 to 5 the Musical" and "Back to the Future the Musical" probably crosses a line, imo.

@JoeMarlerseyes
Loving him and his eyes on Celebrity Traitors. Great username

I felt very sorry for Amber last night. Second on the leaderboard but still in the bottom two. No wonder she was in tears. Lauren was very sweet when she comforted her.

Being in musical theatre doesn't automatically make you a professional dancer on a par with the ballroom and Latin experts. It depends on your role. If you have a main role involving a lot of singing, then I can't see the dancing and choreography being to the same standard as we see on Strictly.

Strictly needed someone at short notice and she accepted. She doesn't deserve all the hate she's been getting on sm.

Lauren is like a chameleon, there's so many times I do t immediately recognise her in the group dances!

Nobody "deserves" hate on sm, or anywhere else!
What is pertinent, is to think that Amber has a significant advantage being a musical theatre professional.
'tis all 😊

She is, last night I was thinking she was maybe one of the choreographers or someone I couldn't work it out.

As has many, many other ringer contestants in the past. That's not going to change whether the audience like it or not.

Yoi could also infer that those who are in the entertainment industry have an advantage with their experience, therefore able to handle the pressure better, or those who have a billion followers on Instagram have an advantage because that's how many votes they will get regardless of how well they dance.

We need ringers in Strictly because no one wants to see 15 Rosses. There are enough non ringers for those who like journey contestants, but Strictly is ultimately an entertainment show rather than a dance competition.

It was surprising, I assumed la Voix and balvinder would be in the do. Felt sorry for Amber she didn’t deserve to be there.

I noticed during her Cha Cha Cha that Amber has one of those “dancer affectations” that bugs me! Don’t know if they teach these things or if some people just do it.

It’s hard to describe but it’s a motion with the hand that (to me) looks like she’s trying to wipe some sauce off her mouth/lips 🤣 I’ll have to see if I can grab a screenshot of her doing it.

Amy is another one that has one of these affectations - she puts her hand to her chest like she’s saying “Who? Me?” on a very regular basis!

Just bothers me for some reason!

Bal finally got her bounce, suspect she will be back there next week though. LaVoix has fans. They kept him in after last week’s debacle, and he was better this week.

It's not a choice between someone starring in a West End musical, and Ross King.
Think about Krishnan Guru Murthy, Hamza Yassin, Chris McClausland, etc.
I think it's more entertaining to see someone learn and do well.

I don't care about the advantages some contestants have. In fact, I prefer them to the disadvantaged. I really do not enjoy Ellie or La Voix. I did not enjoy Hamza or Chris either. I did mostly enjoy Rose and Krishnan. But Krishnan only up to a point. I don't find journeys from A to B entertaining.

That may make me a bad person but it is what it is.

I'm sure you're not a bad person 😂!
Just a person with an opinion on a light entertainment show, like the rest of us on here!
It would be very dul if we all thought the same 😊

So why watch a show with the premise of people learning to dance? If you don't enjoy that proces surely it isn't the show for you. Turn on for the first five minutes of the results show to see the pro dance and be done for the week.

Because there are always people learning how to dance who are almost as good as the ringers. Like Alex this year in the rumba or Karen's jive.

Plus I watch for the ringers, and there are always at least two!

We are all different.

No. They had the same situation with Ashley Roberts. Ashley was frequently in the DO but was invariably saved.

There has to be at least one highly competent dancer in the final.
The judges know this.

There’s this obsession that the show must have a competent dancer on board from the start. I don’t agree. I’d prefer 15 novices. Some will crash and burn, others will reveal unexpected talent and become the competent dancer. It’s a bit patronising to the audience to suggest the show couldn’t exist without ringers to ooh and aah at, and this is shown in their general voting unpopularity

I also think the theme weeks are very patronising. I don't need them to be dressed like Pumba.

In re voting unpopularity, ringers never win- or rarely- but they make it to the final. So someone must be voting for them.

It's the judges saving them that gets them to the final.

Not many people voted for Amber yesterday, but the judges made sure she was saved.

It happens every year.