I was unable to join in with the Sequinistas below the line on the Guardian this week as I am in London and with grandchildren. I missed the start and did not see Susan and then my youngest granddaughter, who was tired but would not admit it, had a full blown tantrum and the noise was pretty horrendous. By the time I had got her calmed down and she had reached the hiccuping stage, though I had seen the dances, I could not hear what the judges were saying and the rest of the programme was hardly restful.
OK so my thoughts might be a tad disjointed but here goes.
I think we have four couples who are candidates for the dance off. Molly and AJ which is a shame as I loved her ballroom last week, but the paso really did not suit her and I felt she looked really uncomfortable.
Aljiaz and Gemma - agreed with most of the judges comments. As Bruno pointed out she was dancing with Aiijiaz so surely she could show some emotion and I agree. Very lumpy all round. At the end she looked as if she could barely stand straight with the twirling.
Ruth and anton - out of the couples who could be in the dance off I have to say that these two are the front runners. I like Ruth very much but she has reached her limits now.
And I am sad to say that I think Jonny and Oti - Darcy made the point that he is not improving and I think she is right. I think he will get through though because he and Oti have a huge following and are very popular.
I was not expecting a perfect score from Debbie and Giovanni as I did not think the salsa would suit her but I was most impressed with the way giovanni let Debbie have the limelight. He showcased her beautifully and seems to have learned how to give his partner respect this time around which I do not think he did in the past.
Alexndra and Gorka were pretty damn good but I thought they would be and glad to see that she has muted her response somewhat in the Clauditorium
Davood and Nadia - creeping up on the inside and he is really developing into a great dancer. His journey, yes I know it is the J word, is what Strictly is all about and I think he is headed for the final. Great Charleston though I realy disike the faux Cockney bit and the fingers in the lapels but an excellent routine.
Thought Claudia looked very elegant but Tess had a dress that somebody had taken the scissorts to again. I have no comment on the dresses of Madames Darcy and Ballas as I did not see their entrance and only saw them sitting down.
The judges seemed to have calmed down somewhat in their marking and on the whole I did agree with their scores.
My feeling is that the dance off will be Ruth and Anton and Mollie and AJ but I could be wrong. As I said, I could not really concentrate on the show tonight beween bath time and tantrums. Shall be glad to get to bed tonight.