Occasional Hope

This might be a spoiler regarding who gets fairly close to the final...

Thoughts on week 1 and my ranking: GOOD 1. Karim - ooh, what a great mover. Very good indeed. And very engaging too - I reckon he could win? 2. Kelvin the replacement - wow, Jamie Lang's injury was a blessing. Great hip action. A real contender. 3. Will - surprisingly good. 4. Michelle - hmm, bit of a dominatrix personality. Her dancing was good, but I really don't see the GBP taking to her personality. Will be a Shock Early Boot. OK 5. Alex Scott - seems like a nice person, and dance was very good for week 1; she was the only one I felt was a bit undermarked, possibly as a result of going first, and as one of the less well known celebs she could be at risk next week, 6. Mike thingy from Breakfast - much better than expected, that was quite entertaining, energetic and funny. Lucky he got Katya. Will last a while. 7. Saffron Barker - really irritating teenage girl persona. A few missteps in her dance, but probably has a devoted fanbase to get her to the final. Plus AJ. 8. Catherine Tyldesley - a bit walky but not bad. Probably has potential. 9. Dev - a bit limp. THE BAD 10. Emma B - a big disappointment for the last dance of the night, clumsy and out of time. 11. Emma Weymouth - tentative and lacking energy. Disappointing - I thought she would do better. Hope we see more giraffes etc. 12. David James - stiff, dire choice of song and staging, how cringeworthy was that even by Strictly standards. 13. Chris Ramsey - a dad dancer, clumsy 14. Anneka - an exercise routine not a dance. But she had energy. 15. James Cracknell - awful. Looked more like the Hunchback of Notre Dame than a dancer., and it was glacially slow. First out?

Neil and Katya have separated: https://www.msn.com/en-gb/entertainment/celebrity/strictlys-katya-and-neil-jones-split-professional-dancers-announce-they-are-divorcing-following-11-year-relationship-10-months-after-seann-walsh-kissing-scandal/ar-AAFYDoU?ocid=spartanntp

Congrats to Pasha and ex celeb partner Rachel Riley who just got married and have a baby due shortly.

Anyone stick it out to the end? I came back after the live shows started and quite enjoyed it. Oti was so sweet with her young mentees although a bit undiscriminating as a judge per se. I liked Alesha and Jordan as hosts - I'd take them over Tess and Claudia on Strictly any day, but I imagine Alesha having judged Strictly would mean they would never use her for a 'lesser' role even if much better suited to her.

Pasha won't be back next year. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-47224303

is it just me or is anyone else a bit skewed out by having a “special bond” between a 17 year old and a 11 year old? Great routine though.

Anyone watch the Christmas special?

I think my analogy with Tom was right this year, just a different candidate and reasoning. I think LS picked Sian as a person rather than necessarily her business. I guess Joe has been airbrushed from Apprentice history.

The history on DW is always a bit dodgy. But then so is the science. Actually, I have actually seen a licence for a woman as a surgeon in the 1660s (later than this, obviously, and extraordinarily rare, but still shows it was possible, and I believe there are a few examples elsewhere too.) OTOH surgeons were not doctors but in lower regard. The term Doctor was used only for someone with a higher academic degree, which would have been out of reach for women, and is most common at this date for DDs (Doctors of Divinity), with higher degrees in theology. Doctors of physic(k) were what we now call medical doctors - in the US the term physician is still routine too. There had been women in the medieval ages who practiced medicine before the universities gained control of the subject, eg 'Dame Trotula'; and they were then more marginalised. A number of women trained as doctors in the UK and the US in the 19th century.

Well, Kevin finally got his trophy. Stacey looked like she was forgotten at the end . Ashley was great in the final, but clearly had no chance. I was sorry though that there was no pure ballroom from her tonight. Faye had my favourite show dance, but blew it for me with her last dance. It also, although she did have ballroom in her show dance, show that these new categories effectively mean you can effectively get two show dances in the finale, which seems unfair. I honestly expected Joe to win. Although arguably the weakest in the final, he had the biggest journey, his showdance was a crowd pleaser and I adore his Charleston which is super fun, plus all his YouTube fans. Kind of meh on Stacey tbh, although I liked her paso tonight.

Yes, Camilla's business needs a lot of work, but all her problems are fixable - professional marketing, packaging, premises and staff who aren't her unpaid family members can all be added, but the product itself has a lot of potential. I was thinking with Sian's swimsuits, the price was reasonable (even cheap) for something hand sewn by the designer herself. If it's mass produced it's automatically a less exclusive product and the price needs to be lower.

I was right about Daniel. The interviews seemed a tiny bit less gruelling than in previous years. I wonder if Camilla may actually win now. Her business plan needs a lot of work, but she does have a good product, not unlike Tom and his nail file winning. Sian’s business seems to be based on her handmade designs, so can that work if someone else is manufacturing?

I don't think Daniel's business plan, as unveiled in the Final 5 programme, will work. The product sounds a bit dodgy.

Prue’s career in summary: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prue_Leith

I’m not sure my arithmetic is up to it, but with a tie at the top is there’s a chance Ashley and Faye could both be in the dance-off? I hope not, because they are the best dancers. Lauren is clearly the weakest left now, and ought to go this week, but has obviously been getting lots of votes so I wouldn’t bet against her making the final. I enjoyed Joe’s dances This week. Stacey is very good but I just don’t feel it.

I look forward to seeing Camilla eviscerated in interviews. Do this bunch learn nothing? After the fiasco of the sexy airline stewardesses, they still thought it would be a god idea for tackily sexy Santas' elves. With gift chocs the actual taste is not that important imo.

Joe’s salsa was the campest dance I think I’ve ever seen. I’m not sure his fans will like it, and imo he could possibly be at risk this week. Poor Ashley is definitely in the danger zone again, despite a lovely light quickstep. I suspect Lauren will escape again. I didn’t particularly like Faye’s dance but she’s the only person definitely safe.

I thought James should have had a broader Scots accent. But historically he really was obsessed with witches and involved in specific cases: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daemonologie http://llewellyn.com/journal/article/2186

Yeah, I loathed Joe's dance - hated the choreography, and didn't think it was performed well either. When it comes to the final it's all about the public vote, so anyone who makes it to the final can win. I think Ashley doesn't have the fanbase to win, and Faye might also get a bit of backlash/lack of active support for dance training, putting Joe and Stacey as the realistic favourites to win. But Lauren is obviously getting a lot of votes atm so I wouldn't rule her out even though she is perhaps the weakest dancer left.

If not for the lindyhop I think Ashley would be at risk this week. She is a fantastic dancer but even my mum has picked up on the professional background.

I enjoyed this episode. As the human workers were a quota and they had plenty of robots, they didn't really need them to do anything at all. In terms of overarching themes for episodes this series I think we're seeing two: Fat cannot always be averted, which didn't turn up this week; and you can never be sure an obvious villain actually is one (the witnesses last week, the AI system this week).

AJ was one of the winners of Celebrity Hunted. https://www.shropshirestar.com/entertainment/2018/11/15/celebrity-hunted-dancer-aj-already-a-tv-winner/

I think Kate, Lauren and Graeme are all at risk, with everyone else likely to be safe. I thought Graeme's routine was charming, and Lauren wasn't bad so I suppose I hope Kate goes, insfar as I want anyone to. Joe's hairstyle tonight made him look a lot older.

Danny's refusal to do ITT after being voted off and also to appear at the final doesn't put hi m in a great light.