STRICTLY COME DANCING 2024.

[Cleoriff]

It's that time of year again.

@sheepdogcomes out of hibernation to join me and others like @RunrigForever  to comment on BBC's 'flagship' entertainment show. SCD.

I did wonder if it would take place this year as it's had some really bad press recently.

Two of the male professionals, Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Prima have been accused of abusive teaching methods. Giovanni has denied any wrongdoing. Last year he danced with Amanda Abington, who dropped out of the show. Graziano danced with Zara Larsson and he admitted kicking her. He was sacked immediately.

The BBC  have said they will be putting advisors into the training rooms to monitor all training and ensuring the welfare of the celebrities. So away we go again.

It doesn't start until September so I'll be adding to this thread as and when other celebs are revealed.

The first two contestants have been announced;

CHRIS McCAUSLAND - COMEDIAN

Chris is a really funny guy. He's also totally blind. As he said, this should be a laugh. 😂

The next contestant is JB GILL (from the boy band JLS)

[RunrigForever]

....... ....... ....... above post 20 continued below :-

Motsi is sooo Loud, but looks better turned out

Craig looks good with beard & new hair-do 

Shirley in red with feather trim

Anton, debonair as usual.

Tess ..... 'Gets her money easy / can't ad-lip / gets tight-lipped when others do ad-lib' ..... Daly. She looked someway dressed ok.

Claudia was Claudia.

Liked Vito & Ellie's pasa doble ... = ... they were / are, outstanding dancers / partnership.

Yes ... Mondella & Johannes will do well from the get-go

Wynne will be fun, glad he got the fact that Katya comes from Russia, out of the way 1st in own humour way ....... thanking you Wynne the Welsh.

The comedian who is blind will have a fantastic partner in Diane Buswell ..... they will be fun

Don't like the TOWIE The Only Way is Essex bloke 

The older female in damson outfit won't do me any favours !

Toyah is already 'Up My Nose' ... ... ... sorry Neil Jones, 1st time partnered with a celebrity.

Nick Knowles will do Dad Dancing

The young man off Eastenders seems a bit too wishy-washy for me

The 3 times Olympic Swimmer will do well ..... his height ..... & ..... as a sportsman is used to having a trainer

The Dr GP off tv will do well

The young woman with long blonde hair I think will be a bit of a dark horse as-it-were

Enjoyed the group dance

The sound & vision on my tv was slightly out of sync ... ?

Roll on Week 1 ... ... ... xx

[sheepdog]

Week 1 songs and dances released by the BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/2024/strictly-come-dancing-2024-group-dance-teased-in-brand-new-pi...

So the pro routine are performing again "live" are they? Or was it just recorded the other week whilst waiting for the first show to start. Guess there's a few more in the can already.

OOh thanks to html formatting of tables, copy and pasting works rather nicely. Usual mix and mis-match that we love Strictly for. Ray of Light for a Tango? I think not and there's a strong hint of Eau d'Exit for Nick Knowles in the air. Probably a bit too early for a Paso with that track by the Prodigy but I shall watch with interest. 

COUPLE	DANCE STYLE	TRACK	ARTIST
Montell & Johannes	Foxtrot	Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My Baby	Dinah Washington
Punam & Gorka	Cha Cha	Love At First Sight	Kylie Minogue
Sam & Nikita	Foxtrot	Where Did Our Love Go	The Supremes
Sarah & Vito	Quickstep	9 to 5	Dolly Parton
Tasha & Aljaž	Cha Cha	Espresso	Sabrina Carpenter
Toyah & Neil	Tango	Ray Of Light	Madonna
Chris & Dianne	Cha Cha	Twist and Shout	The Beatles
Jamie & Michelle	Viennese Waltz	Beautiful Things	Benson Boone
JB & Amy	Waltz	When I Need You	Leo Sayer
Nick & Luba	Jive	We Built This City	Starship
Paul & Karen	American Smooth	Vindaloo	Fat Les
Pete & Jowita	Paso Doble	Breathe	The Prodigy
Shayne & Nancy	Samba	Do I Do	Stevie Wonder
Tom & Nadiya	Tango	Golden	Harry Styles
Wynne & Katya	Samba	Help Yourself	Tom Jones

[Cleoriff]

Oh I love Breathe by The Prodigy. (The last live concert I went to see before the untimely death of Keith Flint)

Not sure a Jive to We Built This City is a good idea?

Nor an American Smooth to Vindaloo by Fat Les !!

I'll be out this evening so watching the recording @sheepdog. Good for me as I can whip through the filler!!

[sheepdog]

And the opening number was ok but dragged on a bit. Tess in a flame red pant suit which was really garish on my tv via iplayer whilst Claudia in Star Wars Sackcloth. New category: Motsi's Monstrosity's. Lets just say wrong dress, wrong colour and just wrong. 

I'm just copy n pasting the above order as can't remember the order and I'm just being lazy 😉

Montell & Johannes	Foxtrot	Phenomenal for a week one for character and technique. A little to work on but the strongest contender already. That and more Gladiator puns to come.
Punam & Gorka	Cha Cha	Disco Donna. Hmm, won't last long because needs more technique but there are worst ones out there tonight but not many.
Sam & Nikita	Foxtrot	Was second on and boy was she good. Naturally week one issues but one to watch.
Sarah & Vito	Quickstep	Jive bunny! Wasn't expecting this at all and is going to throw a big spanner into the dance off if she keeps this up.
Tasha & Aljaž	Cha Cha	Potential but needs more control and fluidity. Judges gushing over leg action.
Toyah & Neil	Tango	Probably the worst Tango you've ever seen in 20 years of SCD. That headshake defies belief. Also the worst of the night.
Chris & Dianne	Cha Cha	Shall we agree that Chris is going provide a very different interpretation each week. Bring it on! Pulled off a pretty decent set of moves at times.
Jamie & Michelle	Viennese Waltz	I think Jamie's problem is that he lacks a bit of class and grace. And I think Michelle may not be the best choreographer for him. Needless to say, he's got potential if Michelle can unlock it.
JB & Amy	Waltz	Very nice, very good. Suit jacket wasn't though which made him look stumpy. Question is will he be able to latin equally well?
Nick & Luba	Jive	First on and surprise of the night, he wasn't bad and wasn't the worst as we discovered. Managed to keep it together and not mess anything up. Well done.
Paul & Karen	American Smooth	Oddly still not the worst of the night even with an appalling match of song to dance. Fun for his limitations though.
Pete & Jowita	Paso Doble	I liked it. Considering this wasn't a Paso tune nor was the Paso something anyone should do in week 1 given it is not a danceable tune (yeah blasting it in the Vauxhall Nova is a totally different experience), he did do a good job. Whether or not he can believe in himself is another matter.
Shayne & Nancy	Samba	Ok, he has the moves and may go further than midway but needs more to win over the voters otherwise may find himself in the dance off too often.
Tom & Nadiya	Tango	Kind of started ok but got better towards the end. Posture obviously but could do very well.
Wynne & Katya	Samba	Ah. Well there were moves resembling a samba at times and wasn't a mess but lets enjoy the ride anyway for a few weeks.

[Cleoriff]

What a clever trick @sheepdog 

I have to do it the old way sadly.

I liked the opening number although it did go on a bit.

Now Motsi has sorted her hair out, wardrobe should be her next project. Nothingg worse than a size 18 woman squeezing themself into a size 12 dress.

Craig looks more and more like David Mitchell with that beard..

Nick And Luba. Jive. Better than I expected him to be. Obviously worked hard Scored 18

Sam and Nikita. Foxtrot.  What a joy to watch. Really good Scored 23

Shane and Nancy; Samba Was a decent first dance, although as Craig said it was more like a salsa at times Scored 21

Toyah and Neil. Tango. What an absolute disaster. Did her feet ever touch the floor? More like Dolly Clothespeg out of Wurzel Gummidge!! Scored 12

Tasha and Aljaz. Cha Cha. An excellent first dance. A lot of potential. Scored 30

JB and Amy. Waltz. Lovely first dance, great footwork. (I hope Amy isn't overmarked due to her cancer recovery) Scored 31

Pete and Jowita. Paso Doble. Firstly, that was NOT Breathe by Prodigy. It was a mash up of various Prodigy numbers. Secondly, Paso should never be a first dance. I thought it was ok. The judges didn't like the music (Peasants) 😂 Scored 17

Sasha and Vito. Quickstep. A really great dance. Loved it. Scored 30

Tom and Nadiya. Tango. Enjoyed this. His posture was hunched but I bet he'll improve. Scored 23

Punam and Gorka Cha Cha. Didn't enjoy this much. A bit wooden Scored 19

Paul and Karen. American Smooth. I'm gobsmacked! I knew this had disaster written all over it! It was entertaining though Scored 17

Jamie and Michelle. Viennese Waltz. Poor footwork. Poor posture. Not sure how he won the Xmas Special Scored23

Chris and Dianne. Well I'm amazed. Excellent choreography Dianne. Scored 23

Montell and Johannes. Foxtrot. Lovely dance with some beautiful moves Scored 26

Wynne and Katya. Samba. It was ok. A bit better than Shane. Scored 26.

Marks are carried forward to next week

[Cleoriff]

Someone posted this on the SCD group.

[Cleoriff]

@sheepdog @RunrigForever 

WEEK TWO Songs + Dances

Montell and Johannes. Samba. Fuego by Eleni Foureira

Punam + Gorka. Foxtrot. Man I Feel Like a Woman by Shania Twain

Sam +Nikita. Charleston.  Bob Wilson and his Varsity Rhythm Band

Sarah + Vito. Paso Doble. Freed From Desire by Gala Mollela

Toyah + Neil.  Jive. Nutbush City Limits by Ike and Tina Turner (Good Grief!)

Tasha + Aljaz. Viennese Waltz. Misty Blue by Dorothy Moore

Chris + Dianne. Foxtrot. Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy by The Tams.

Jamie + Michelle. Rumba. Aint No Sunshine by Bill Withers.

JB + Amy . Cha Cha to Closer By Ne-Yo

Nick + Luba. American Smooth. Parklife by Blur

Paul + Karen. Salsa. Fireball by Pitbull and John Ryan

Pete + Jowita. American Smooth. I Had Some Help by Post Malone

Shayne + Nancy. Tango. The Door By Teddy Swims

Tom +Nadiya. Cha Cha. Boogie Wonderland by Earth Wind and Fire

Wynne +Katya. Viennese Waltz. Blue Danube by Johann Strauss.

[sheepdog]

Bit of a ooh some good and oh so this could be bad mix:

Montell and Johannes. Samba. Fuego by Eleni Foureira

Punam + Gorka. Foxtrot. Man I Feel Like a Woman by Shania Twain

Sam +Nikita. Charleston.  Bob Wilson and his Varsity Rhythm Band

Sarah + Vito. Paso Doble. Freed From Desire by Gala Mollela

Expectations high for Montell on this after last week. Pull it off and there's going to be little to stop her. Unlike Punam who will be milking this for the hen party tune that it is (which is a good pop tune btw). Another high expectations for both Sam & Sarah though another 90's (euro)dance classic for a Paso is getting a bit desperate now. I shall wait for the Strictly remix or be be disappointed by it.

Toyah + Neil.  Jive. Nutbush City Limits by Ike and Tina Turner (Good Grief!)

Tasha + Aljaz. Viennese Waltz. Misty Blue by Dorothy Moore

Chris + Dianne. Foxtrot. Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy by The Tams.

Jamie + Michelle. Rumba. Aint No Sunshine by Bill Withers.

After the first block of high hopes, this next act brings it crashing down leaving a crater. Think we can say goodbye to Toyah this week though Jamie may be in the dance-off with her. Bit of a gamble doing the rumba though this early.  As for Chris, we'll enjoy it and Tasha could be the dance of the night. 

JB + Amy . Cha Cha to Closer By Ne-Yo

Nick + Luba. American Smooth. Parklife by Blur

Paul + Karen. Salsa. Fireball by Pitbull and John Ryan

Pete + Jowita. American Smooth. I Had Some Help by Post Malone

Never heard of Post Malone but obligatory Youtube viewing thinks this could work if Pete gets into it. Paul Merson may get away with being abysmal this week but not next week. Weird choice for an AS so guessing the narrative of the dance may be interesting.  Bit of a dull tune for JB so just being competent will be enough. 

Shayne + Nancy. Tango. The Door By Teddy Swims

Tom +Nadiya. Cha Cha. Boogie Wonderland by Earth Wind and Fire

Wynne +Katya. Viennese Waltz. Blue Danube by Johann Strauss.

Oh what a good tune by Teddy Swims and that's the first time I've heard him! Got some good other stuff too. Only problem is that I think its more for the Cha-cha then Tango. I'm intrigued on how this will be done. Bit of a staple tune for the Cha cha and should suit Tom considering he doesn't need to be in close contact. Wynne's tune is so perfectly matched with his musicality and dance I'd be disappointed if he wasn't in the top 5 of the night. 

[Cleoriff]

Yes, I listened to Teddy Swims as I'd never heard of him either. Good tune. I hope Shayne does well with it.

I agree with the music choice for Wynne. Just up his street.

I hope this IS the last week for Toyah. Problem is, she and her music is still popular at concerts. So may win the public vote.

Poor Neil. His first celebrity partner and he's given her. I bet he's fuming. 😂

[RunrigForever]

I'll keep it brief

Montell will do a good samba opening the show

Wynne will do well closing the show with Viennese waltz particularly with suitable music: the Blue Danube by Strauss

Toyah is going to have to be good (which she won't) to fast jive number Nutbush City Limits by Tina Turner. Never liked Toyah = just a Gob on a Stick !

Some weird music like dancing an American Smooth to Blur's Park Life.

In my opinion dad dancing Nick Knowles is for the early exit ... so ... it doesn't matter to an extent what the other dance partnerships do ?! ... ... ... just how I feel x ... ... ... I do happen to like his show DIY SOS, he presents it well.

I am looking forward to enjoying Chris & Diane's dancing.

Do we know who chooses the dances & to what music ?

I've probably said it before on previous SCD shows that the musical director is not of a ballroom / Latin American dancing background = just my opinion.

Thanks @Cleoriff for posting this week's dances & music ... & ... to you & @sheepdog for your comments.

Would have watched last week's show, but just dozed off unintentionally. Must set the alarm on my phone this coming Saturday.