Strictly Come Dancing 2020

[invisibleotter]

I think most (all?) of the recent British pros come from quite an intense competition background from a young age and give off either a really odd, intense vibe (Kevin and Jo Clifton, Amy) or are just generally a bit clueless and lacking in self-awareness (AJ - don't get me started on the 'new Ant and Dec' thing ), and this might come from that. This is why I find them a bit off-putting anyway.

Some of the overseas pros have a bit more life and job experience outside that world, and just seem a bit more chilled out, perhaps because of this

Actually all of the pros the except Janette were competition dancers, since they were children. All the titles AJ went on about were underage titles, he never actually danced at competition level as an adult. Anton only danced competition level for a few years as an adult too.

Most of the pros left competition dancing for Burn the Floor in their 20's though. The only pros who haven't been in BTF are Neil & Katya, Oti, AJ, Amy & Anton. The BTF dancers though are far more aware of themselves & also when seeing any of their shows they steal the stage, as they have had years if practice on stage. It's why Dianne, Karen, Gorka & Giovanni stood out so much on the pro tour, even though Oti, Neil & Katya are the best dancers technically, they don't have the years of stage experience of some of the pros.

As for starting at a young age, Amy only started dancing around the age of 12 it's the same with AJ, so I think they are just oblivious to how they come across on camera, but it has nothing to do with them dancing at a young age.

 

[LowCalCalzoneZone]

Actually all of the pros the except Janette were competition dancers, since they were children. All the titles AJ went on about were underage titles, he never actually danced at competition level as an adult. Anton only danced competition level for a few years as an adult too.

Most of the pros left competition dancing for Burn the Floor in their 20's though. The only pros who haven't been in BTF are Neil & Katya, Oti, AJ, Amy & Anton. The BTF dancers though are far more aware of themselves & also when seeing any of their shows they steal the stage, as they have had years if practice on stage. It's why Dianne, Karen, Gorka & Giovanni stood out so much on the pro tour, even though Oti, Neil & Katya are the best dancers technically, they don't have the years of stage experience of some of the pros.

As for starting at a young age, Amy only started dancing around the age of 12 it's the same with AJ, so I think they are just oblivious to how they come across on camera, but it has nothing to do with them dancing at a young age.

Ah thanks. I knew vaguely about the Clifton's, AJ, Amy and Neil and Katya but not the details. I just get a more general vibe of unabashed competitiveness off some of the British pros that I find off putting sometimes

It's interesting what you say about the pro tour - I remember at the time be so surprised how flat Neil and Katya's caberet routine felt compared to all the other dances

 

[invisibleotter]

Ah thanks. I knew vaguely about the Clifton's, AJ, Amy and Neil and Katya but not the details. I just get a more general vibe of unabashed competitiveness off some of the British pros that I find off putting sometimes

It's interesting what you say about the pro tour - I remember at the time be so surprised how flat Neil and Katya's caberet routine felt compared to all the other dances

Yeah, you can tell which dancer have been performing on stage for years compared to those who have done competitions. Like I know from seeing clips of the here comes the girls tour that Dianne danced Chloe & Amy off the stage, Chloe & Amy have only done competitions & Strictly & their stage experience was limited to the large arenas for the live tour, while Dianne did competitions up until the age of 20 when she joined BTF & had been doing the performances for 10 years prior to Strictly. It's only really noticeable in live performances or when the likes of Amy or AJ & even sometimes Oti & Katya have a lead part in a pro number, they just don't have the same stage presence as the other pros & their performances aren't as captivating.

The main reason for bringing in Jason Gilkinson was for the pro numbers, as Strictly wanted them to be elaborate, as before he came in as creative director the pro numbers were just sort of a showcase of each of the Latin & ballroom dances. Jason Gilkinson though was know for creating Burn the Floor & creating stage productions for Latin & ballroom dancing. Although I don't agree with all the dances he does & feel especially last year it was more about making the pro numbers more elaborate & relied too much on camera work & special effects, I do think at the time it was right to bring him in as creative director, he also brought in all the BTF dancers who have brought the dancing on the show to a new level.

Like back in the day it if a pro got a duffer like Kristina or Ola they literally just danced around them, while the pros nowadays actually teach the celebs properly & try to make each dance a performance. Anthon is the only one who still does this when he gets a duffer.

I do think though that Strictly does need a change of creative director & a new line up of pros is needed. I also think, as much as I like Craig & Bruno, that the whole judging panel needs to go & for Strictly to get in ex pros for judges like the Jordans, Brendan Cole, Natalie Lowe, Vincent & Flavia or even Ian Waite.

Apologies for the long message

 

[Rita.]

Anton looks crazy old compared to the other dancers. It's very strange, although I went to a Strictly event a while ago and it was clear that he was probably the most popular dancer with the crowd at the time. Never seen the appeal myself, but there you go.

 

[glasgow27]

I'd keep Craig for some continuity (and since he's the only fair one at the moment) but change up the rest of the judges. Shirley & Motsi just aren't a good fit and Bruno is a loose cannon. I'd suggest a few former pros. Either Erin or Natalie and James Jordan would be my suggestions and then maybe a total wildcard as the 4th judge. I'd take Anton as judge if it was a condition of him finishing as pro.

I'd keep Oti, Katya, Dianne, Giovanni, Gorka, Johannes and would give Luba and Nancy proper chances to see if they can cut it. Anton, Janette, Karen, Graziano, Amy and Neil all need to go and I feel that Aljaž is also past his sell-by date. Nadiya could go either way for me. Would bring in some pros that have been competing recently and would also look into those that have been successful on other versions of the show.

Tess is a joke as host and shouldn't still be there. I'd bring on someone less wooden. I can take or leave Claudia.

 

[FakeSmile]

I do think though that Strictly does need a change of creative director & a new line up of pros is needed. I also think, as much as I like Craig & Bruno, that the whole judging panel needs to go & for Strictly to get in ex pros for judges like the Jordans, Brendan Cole, Natalie Lowe, Vincent & Flavia or even Ian Waite.

I really like Natalie Lowe and think she’d make a good judge - she knows her stuff, she knows the show, and she wouldn’t make it all about her. Not something I could say for the Jordan’s or Brendan!

 

[glasgow27]

I really like Natalie Lowe and think she’d make a good judge - she knows her stuff, she knows the show, and she wouldn’t make it all about her. Not something I could say for the Jordan’s or Brendan!

Brendan judged on the show in NZ back in the day, I don't recall him being that problematic. Same for Ola on the Polish version fairly recently.

I wish that they gave James the judging gig on DOI instead of Barrowman - he is a bit of a twit but his tweets on SCD are generally spot on and I could see him giving decent critiques. Just a shame that he is prone to being abrasive and that doesn't always work for TV.

Natalie would be great though!

 

[FakeSmile]

Brendan judged on the show in NZ back in the day, I don't recall him being that problematic. Same for Ola on the Polish version fairly recently.

I wish that they gave James the judging gig on DOI instead of Barrowman - he is a bit of a twit but his tweets on SCD are generally spot on and I could see him giving decent critiques. Just a shame that he is prone to being abrasive and that doesn't always work for TV.

I think James Jordan can be too much of a loose cannon and the BBC wouldn’t want to risk it. He could have worked on ITV though.

 

[glasgow27]

I think James Jordan can be too much of a loose cannon and the BBC wouldn’t want to risk it. He could have worked on ITV though.

Agreed. I do like the guy's critiques and he could be good if he reined himself in but he can be a total twit at times and I think comes across a homophobe so I'm not sure that I would want him judging if they had a same-sex couple or indeed a really flamboyant gay guy contestant.

 

[UnknownTattler]

I really like Natalie Lowe and think she’d make a good judge - she knows her stuff, she knows the show, and she wouldn’t make it all about her. Not something I could say for the Jordan’s or Brendan!

Agree, it's a no from me to James and Brendan, their egos would be out of control. Speaking of Brendan, I'm currently watching through playlists of old Strictly series, and ive just watched the monstronsity that is Brendan and Lisa Snowdon's showdance what the hell was that? He was hauling her around like a shiny sack of potatoes

 

[glasgow27]

No thanks from me to Ian Waite - didn't like him as a pro and don't like him when he pops up on It Takes Two. Something about him that just bugs me plus he and Zoe Ball are a bit annoying together. His stint as a pro is now well over a decade ago and he's still sticking around the show.

Also no thanks to someone like Pasha or Flavia, they are just too quiet. The fairly reserved personalities don't work well as judges, see Jayne Torvill on DOI.

 

[lizzolyn]

Yeah, you can tell which dancer have been performing on stage for years compared to those who have done competitions. Like I know from seeing clips of the here comes the girls tour that Dianne danced Chloe & Amy off the stage, Chloe & Amy have only done competitions & Strictly & their stage experience was limited to the large arenas for the live tour, while Dianne did competitions up until the age of 20 when she joined BTF & had been doing the performances for 10 years prior to Strictly. It's only really noticeable in live performances or when the likes of Amy or AJ & even sometimes Oti & Katya have a lead part in a pro number, they just don't have the same stage presence as the other pros & their performances aren't as captivating.

The main reason for bringing in Jason Gilkinson was for the pro numbers, as Strictly wanted them to be elaborate, as before he came in as creative director the pro numbers were just sort of a showcase of each of the Latin & ballroom dances. Jason Gilkinson though was know for creating Burn the Floor & creating stage productions for Latin & ballroom dancing. Although I don't agree with all the dances he does & feel especially last year it was more about making the pro numbers more elaborate & relied too much on camera work & special effects, I do think at the time it was right to bring him in as creative director, he also brought in all the BTF dancers who have brought the dancing on the show to a new level.

Like back in the day it if a pro got a duffer like Kristina or Ola they literally just danced around them, while the pros nowadays actually teach the celebs properly & try to make each dance a performance. Anthon is the only one who still does this when he gets a duffer.

I do think though that Strictly does need a change of creative director & a new line up of pros is needed. I also think, as much as I like Craig & Bruno, that the whole judging panel needs to go & for Strictly to get in ex pros for judges like the Jordans, Brendan Cole, Natalie Lowe, Vincent & Flavia or even Ian Waite.

Apologies for the long message

I agree with you.

I feel like the qualities of the group dances and pro's improved when Jason Gilkinson joined and brought in the BTF dancers (apart from Janette who is not ballroom trained).

My only hope for the judging panel is that they stop playing favourites like they did last year with Kelvin and be fair with the dances they see in front of them, I feel Craig is the only one who does that to a degree.

 

[Rita.]

Agree, it's a no from me to James and Brendan, their egos would be out of control. Speaking of Brendan, I'm currently watching through playlists of old Strictly series, and ive just watched the monstronsity that is Brendan and Lisa Snowdon's showdance what the hell was that? He was hauling her around like a shiny sack of potatoes

I think the week or so before, they had a really accomplished show dance couple on in the pro slot and I'm certain that made Brendan's imagination go into overdrive. Poor Lisa. She looked like she was going to be stuffed into an oven and served up with cranberry sauce and chipolatas.

 

[Spencerskates]

For ex pros on the judging panel I’d have Natalie Lowe, Karen Hardy, Ian Waite and Matthew Culter. James and Brendan are definitely too controversial!

 

[lizzolyn]

For me I don't want an ex-pro as a judge.

I would rather a judge from the ballroom/latin world who knows what they're talking about and who is not biased for any contestant.

 

[invisibleotter]

For me I don't want an ex-pro as a judge.

I would rather a judge from the ballroom/latin world who knows what they're talking about and who is not biased for any contestant.

A lot of the ex pros from Strictly are qualified competition judges. The majority of pros are from the competition world having competed themselves at pro-level, then did their teaching & judging exams too.

Shirley is a Latin/ballroom judge for the highest levels of competitions & is the most biased judge on the panel & has her clear favourites, so is Motsi for that matter &

 

[lizzolyn]

A lot of the ex pros from Strictly are qualified competition judges. The majority of pros are from the competition world having competed themselves at pro-level, then did their teaching & judging exams too.

Shirley is a Latin/ballroom judge for the highest levels of competitions & is the most biased judge on the panel & has her clear favourites, so is Motsi for that matter &

Thats why I want someone like Shirley or Motsi; not a Pro who has already been on the show who can come at it from a biased angle.

 

[glasgow27]

Might have mentioned this before (my memory is rubbish on this sort of thing) - what do we think of SCD having people with past dance experience on the show?

Last year was mostly an all beginner series with the exception of Karim and I think that contributed to it being a bit of a dull year. I like that they seem to have a few with actual experience this time. The likes of Chris Ramsey & Alex Scott may have had journeys but I didn't enjoy either of their dancing (and same for Joe Sugg in 2018). I guess I prefer the absolute crap and the absolute brilliant rather than the middle ground on this show.

 

[Pamellla]

Might have mentioned this before (my memory is rubbish on this sort of thing) - what do we think of SCD having people with past dance experience on the show?

Last year was mostly an all beginner series with the exception of Karim and I think that contributed to it being a bit of a dull year. I like that they seem to have a few with actual experience this time. The likes of Chris Ramsey & Alex Scott may have had journeys but I didn't enjoy either of their dancing (and same for Joe Sugg in 2018). I guess I prefer the absolute crap and the absolute brilliant rather than the middle ground on this show.

Agreed ! It’s boring if they are all crap, I enjoy a younger one who can actually dance !

 

[Guitarwarrior]

Might have mentioned this before (my memory is rubbish on this sort of thing) - what do we think of SCD having people with past dance experience on the show?

Personally I think it all depends on how much and what type of previous experience they have. I do prefer watching people improve but I do understand they’ve got to have a mixture of ability to keep people entertained. But I still stand by a previous statement that Ashley roberts was far too experienced to be taking part. She was at a similar level to the majority of pros.