Apologies, Rachel

In my review of I'd Do Anything, I said Rachel shows no facial expressions or listened to the lyrics. Rewatching her performance on the website, I apologize, as she obviously listened to the lyrics and did great drama and facial expressions to show the lyrics' meanings.

Sorry, Rach!

I'd Do Anything

First week of I'd Do Anything - Scores

1) Jessie - River Deep, Mountain High
My mum's guess for the winner (she looks like Nancy) - she was right with Connie but wrong with Seamus. Could she get this one right?
A really energetic performance which showed off her great vocal and her acting was also good. Great start to the evening.
8/10

2) Jodie - Chasing Pavements
My guess for the winner.
I am pleased Jodie picked this song. In the advertisements and pre-shows of I'd Do Anything, she seemed really over-the-top in a nice way, but this song showed she can sing... seriously. She made it her own and it was a really good performance.
8/10

3) Tara - Suddenly I See
My family being big KT Tunstall fans, this was a real let-down. She made it her own, like Jodie did with Chasing Pavements, but it was just too over-the-top with "little twiddly bits" as we musicians call them. Let's just say it wasn't the best performance of the night.
6/10

4) Ashley - Black Velvet
She was too OTT for my liking. But her vocal was quite good, but I don't think the song showcased Nancy (like Graham announced the songs would at the start of the night). It didn't show much acting either. But a quite good vocal.
7/10

5) Amy - Respect
I said Tara's performance "wasn't the best... of the night". But it wasn't the worst: Amy's was. Me not being prejudging when I looked at the final 12 on the BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk/oliver), I chose her as the first to go. The judges saw different to me, and I really can't see why. Worst performance of the night.
5/10

6) Keisha - Mad About the Boy
Right, now I've got Amy out of the way, I can stop being Craig Revel-Horwood. Keisha is a very good actress and this performance definitely showcased that talent. Her vocal is also very good. A great all-round performance.
8/10

7) Francesca - Hero
I don't see why Francesca was Rachel's understudy, because tonight, Francesca definitely came out on top for me. My friend sings this song a lot and, although (not being biased) I think my friend sings it better than Francesca did, it was a really good performance. She has an amazing vocal (don't know why John commented on the harshness of her top voice - there wasn't any) but what I marked her down for was she should have kept the actions simple. I found her actions a bit OTT at times. But otherwise a great performance.
8/10

8) Rachel - About You Now
A good song to sing, but not to showcase Nancy as. If you listen to the chorus lyrics, they say "I was dumb, I was wrong, I let you down, But I know how I feel about you now". You couldn't tell from Rachel's performance that that's what the song's about. Yes, the song is a bouncy song to belt out, but facial expressions could show that she had made a mistake, according to the lyrics. But, like Amy, the judges were obviously watching a different performance and they loved it.
7/10

9) Samantha - I Love Rock n Roll
When I heard the song she was singing and saw the outfit she was wearing, I basically wrote Samantha off the show straight away. But her performance blew me away. Best performance of the night. Great vocal talent. Didn't see much acting, but on the vocal, amazing.
9/10

10) Sarah - Get Here
A complete contrast of mood with this song after the belter of I Love Rock n Roll. Sarah does look young but her voice is mature. Like one of the judge's commented, her voice is like honey. And I like honey! She also showed good acting skills in the performance. A really nice performance.
8/10

11) Cleo - Who Knew
This was may-be the most disappointing performance of the night. When the show started, I was concentrating on Jessie, Jodie and Cleo. Jessie and Jodie were great, but Cleo was a real let-down. Her vocal was weak at the start of the performance. It got better as the song got rockier (and when the numbers were shown alongside the performances, that was the bit that was shown) but an over-all weak performance.
6/10

12) Niamh - The First Cut is the Deepest
Out of all the Nancys, she looked the most unlike Nancy. But her performance was average. She is in the middle of the pack - not really good, but not really bad. My dad thought she looked a bit wooden, but I think she displayed good acting skills. I described her as nice. But, as your English teacher reminds you all the time, there are better words than nice.
7/10


Leaderboard

1) Samantha
2) Jessie
= Jodie
= Keisha
= Franchesca
= Sarah
7) Ashley
= Rachel
= Niamh
10) Tara
= Cleo
12) Amy

My top 5 are...
1) Samantha
2) Jodie
3) Jessie
4) Franchesca
5) Keisha

Bottom two
1) Amy
2) Cleo
Amy will go.

Dancing on Ice

Only caught the last free dances but will you give you my score anyway:

Linda and Dan
"Suddenly I See"
4.0
19.0

Chris and Frankie
"Ain't No Sunshine"
6.0

Suzanne and Matt
"Music"
6.0 (if there was a higher mark, I would give it as high as I could. Absoloutely amazing!)

Dancing on Ice: Sixties Week

Caught this week's show and, naturally, recorded the scores.
I missed Gareth and Maria's performance but I have all the others (top score is mine, bottom score is the judge's total):

Zaraah and Fred
"The Locomotion"
4.5
22.0

Chris and Frankie
"My Generation"
5.5
24.5

Steve and Suzie
"My Girl"
3.5
18.0

Suzanne and Matt
"Walk on by"
6.0
23.5

Greg and Kristina
"Hey Jude"
3.0
16.0

Linda and Dan
"Son of a Preacher Man"
4.0
19.0

Strictly Come Dancing: The Tour

Just done some really geeky research and come up with these results figures from the Strictly Come Dancing LIVE! Tour website about winning and runners-up figures.

1) Matt and Flavia
Won: 11
Runners-up: 8

2) Zoe and Ian
Won: 4
Runners-up: 11

= Darren and Lilia
Won: 6
Runners-up: 9

4) Louisa and Vincent
Won: 9
Runners-up: 1

5) Letita and Darren
Won: 1
Runners-up: 2

6) Denise and Matt
Won: 0
Runners-up: 0

= Chris and Nicole
Won: 0
Runners-up: 0

= James and Camilla
Won: 0
Runners-up: 0

= Martin and Camilla
Won: 0
Runners-up: 0

There are a couple of shows left, so will update the figures when the results are on the website.

Strictly Come Dancing - The Tour!!!

Sunday 3rd February.
Strictly Come Dancing evening performance.

Starting off with the traditional theme music and a little dance from Kate Thornton and judges Len Goodman, Arlene Phillips and Craig Revel-Horwood, the performance was under-way.

The stars of the show came down to "meet us" and then the dances began, starting with the Ballroom:

Darren Gough and Lilia Kopylova - Foxtrot:-
A great Foxtrot to Big Spender. Loved the music and the choreography. Great start to the evening.

Denise Lewis and Matthew Cutler - Quickstep:-
The music for this dance was fab (it was Sing Sing Sing from Chicargo). Lighting was great. It was a shame about the mistake she made half-way through which was obvious to everyone, even if you weren't paying that much attention. The most disappointing performance of the night.

Christopher Parker and Nicole Cutler - Tango:-
Much better than I expected. Apart from using Kate and Anton's Paso Doble music (Somebody Told Me by The Killers), the performance was good, and I think either he has been practising or Nicole has worked him very hard.

James Martin and Camilla Dallerup - Waltz:-
A lovely Waltz. James was always much better at the Ballroom. Camilla and him make a good partnership and the dance was certainly his best (better than in the series).

Letitia Dean and Darren Bennett - Foxtrot:-
Dancing in her Waltz dress to Call Me Irresponsible, Letitia Dean trotted round the floor like she was a proffessional. She might not have been the best dancer but she certainly put everything into her performance. Really good.

Louisa Lytton and Vincent Simone - Argentine Tango:-
In a sparkly short-cut red dress, Louisa Lytton took to the floor and the whole place erupted. I didn't think she would be able to cope with the passion of the Argentine Tango, but it was fabulous. One of the best dances of the night. And the lifts were amazing.

Matt di Angelo and Flavia Cacace - American Smooth:-
As Kate Thornton announced "Here's what they've been up to since the final" before the video clips, two women behind me giggled "We know what they've been up to!". Great lifts and a good all-round dance.

Zoe Ball and Ian Waite - Tango:-
Great. I loved this dance on Series 3, and seeing it live was amazing. Craig rambled on about a timing issue that made him not give a 10, but I didn't notice it, unlike Denise Lewis' mistake.

After a Latin masterclass from the professionals it was time for a break, and we could vote. On the first round performances, I voted for Louisa and Vincent, and Zoe and Ian.

After the break, the performace restarted with a Vieniesse Waltz by all the couples to Perfect Day, which was enchanting and absoloutely beautiful. And then the Latin round began.

Darren and Lilia - Paso Doble:-
This was when my final vote was cast. It was truely inspiring to see a crickiter to be able to dance like he did in the dance. The costumes were also amazing.

Denise and Matthew - Rumba:-
To the sound of My Heart Will Go On, Denise rumbaed amazingly. Apart from a small wardrobe malfunction when her leg got caught in the dress (which Kate Thornton commmented on by saying "We nearly saw your gold medals, Denise!"), I was amazed by her change from an average Quickstep to an amazing Rumba.

Chris and Nicole - Paso Doble:-
Hmm. It was OK. Running round the MEN Arena with a cape around your neck like Batman must need a lot of courage. And, like he said, Christopher Parker's Strictly journey wouldn't be the same without the Paso Doble. I just wish it had been better!

James and Camilla - Cha Cha Cha:-
A few changes from their original: Camilla wore the dress she wore with Gethin for her Jive this year, and they danced to the track Camilla and Ray danced to in Series 4. Wasn't that good. Then when he went for the results, he told us all about his chicken-wire underwear. Hmm.

Letitia and Darren - Jive:-
Amazing. She put in more than 10000000% and it was soooo worth it! Bouncing around like she was Louisa Lytton, she got the whole of the MEN Arena into a party atmosphere with Real Dead Ringer For Love.

Louisa and Vincent - Jive:-
In Craig's words: One word - A-Ma-Zing! Best dance of the night.

Matt and Flavia - Salsa:-
It looks so much better on TV. It didn't really get me in the party atmosphere, and the tricky move where Matt looks like he kicks Flavia over and then pulls her up: that went a bit wrong and it looked like he did kick her in the head! Another disappointment, after a great American Smooth.

Zoe and Ian - Samba:-
This is my favourite ever Strictly dance, and the couple performed it really well. I loved it and I was even singing along to it! Great, great, great!

The phonelines close and while we wait for the votes to be counted, we are treated to some great dances. Flavia and Vincent perform an expert Argentine Tango with countless leg-flicks and lifts to an awe-inspired silent crowd, ending with great applaus. Special guests James and Ola Jordan performed a Latin medly (Paso Doble, Rumba and Cha Cha Cha) in great outfits. And all the couples performed the Dirty Dancing medley, with Darren Gough and Lilia Kopylova perfoming the famous lift.

And then the results were in.
The final three couples were Darren and Lilia, Louisa and Vincent and (much to my annoyance) Matt and Flavia. Matt and Flavia went out first.
Tension built massively as Darren faced off with Louisa. Louisa was announced the winner and she jumped into Vincent's arms as fireworks and sparks flew everywhere. The night was finished off with

Strictly Tour: Dances

Two days till the big day. V Excited.
Found out some of the dances that the celebs will be dancing:

Letitia and Darren
Waltz
Jive (WOO!!! YEY!!!)

Matt and Flavia
American Smooth
Salsa

Zoe and Ian
Tango
Samba (V Excited about this one as this is one of my favourite all-time dances)

Darren and Lilia
Paso Doble

Denise and Matthew
Quickstep

Louisa and Vincent
Argentine Tango
Jive

Christopher and Nicole
Paso Doble (LOL!!!)

Don't know about James/Martin and Camilla.

This has made me even more excited about the tour. Some great dances and I think the couples that have not been together before are great, especially Denise and Matthew. But I feel sorry for Nicole: she never gets a good partner :(

I'd prefer to see James Martin, as, if we are being honest, we are there for the dancing, and James is better than Martin.

Dancing on Ice

Just watched this week's show and (naturally) scored the routines:

1) Gareth and Maria
'Wake Me Up when September Ends' by Green Day
4.5

2) Linda and Daniel
'Candyman' by Christina Aguilera
3.5

3) Samantha and Pavel
'You Can't Hurry Love' by The Supremes
4.0

4) Chris and Frankie
'Rule the World' by Take That
5.0

5) Aggie and Sergey
'Total Eclipse of the Heart' by Bonnie Tyler
3.0

6) Steve and Susie
(Missed the song. Will update ASAP!)
2.0

7) Greg and Kristina aka Baby Voice
'Licence to Kill' from James Bond
2.0

8) Zaraah and Fred
'Take a Chance on me' by ABBA
4.5

9) Tim and Victoria
'Under Pressure' by Queen
2.5

10) Suzanne and Matt
'Something Stupid' by Frank and Nancy Sinatra
4.5

Strictly 2008

Have been thinking about Strictly '08, and have come up with some great ideas for celebs and a new "week":

Celebs

Female
Fiona Bruce - Newsreader
Paula Radcliffe - Runner
Myleene Klass - Musician
Mel C - Spice Girl
Caroline Flack/Fearne Cotton - TV presenter
Lorainne Kelly - TV presenter
"Honey" from Eastenders - Actress
Zoe Salmon - Blue Peter presenter

Male
Bill Oddie - Nature expert
Tim Henman - Tennis player
Gary Lineker - Sports pundit
Dermot Monahagn - Newsreader
Noel Edmonds - TV presenter
Mark Speight - Artist (Smart)
John Barrowman - Actor
Ray Quinn - Singer (X Factor)


New Week
Seeing as there are two extra celebrities, there will need to be either 3 celebs in the final and one extra week or two extra weeks. I think they should have a new week called Films and Musicals week, where each remaining couple has to dance two dances to a track from a film or musical.

My Strictly Awards

Have just read a post on the MSN Strictly Blog and read Tess Daly's favourite Strictly moments. Agreed with a couple, but thought I could have chosen better ones. And also in the 2008 Strictly Annual, do not agree totally with Len's Lowdown. So thought I would do my own. Most of the awards are from the annual (Len's Lowdown) but have added my own as well:

Best Couple
Aleesha and Matt
Carol and Matt
Louisa and Vincent
Aled and Lilia

Best Improvement
Gethin and Camilla (though I thought he was fab at the start!)

Worst Couple
Fiona and Brendan
(To be fair to Kate and Anton, these two were much worse than them and Kate should never have been compared to Fiona)
Georgina and James
Gabby and James
(James just gets on my nerves over-all, but he argued with Georgina and I think him and Gabby made too big a thing of being knocked out)

Most Unfair Eviction
Spoony and Ola
Aled and Lilia
(I would say Penny and Ian because I loved them but her Salsa that week was pretty bad!)

Biggest Rule-Breaker
The Donut himself, Brendan Cole

Suprise Stayer
Julian Clary
(He should have gone right near the start. If Aled Jones had got the Final, I think it would have been a lot more tense to see who was in the top 2)

Best 10 Dances
Zoe and Ian's Samba
Aleesha and Matt's... Any dance (apart from Samba)
Letitia and Darren's Paso Doble
Gethin and Camilla's Jive
Carol and Matt's Samba
Louisa and Vincent's Jive
Emma and Darren's Tango
Louisa and Vincent's Samba
Jill and Darren's Samba
Mark and Karen's Vieniesse Waltz/Samba

Worst 5 Dances
Fiona and Brendan's Rumba
Kelly and Brendan's Samba
Quentin and Hazel's Cha Cha Cha
Chris and Hanna's Paso Doble
Kate and Anton's Salsa
(Kate and Anton's Salsa music seems to haunt me! I have had to sing it, play it and now watch it on my favourite programme!)

Best 5 Outfits
Aled's Christmas Samba catsuit(!)
Karen's Vieniesse Waltz dress (with Mark R)
Carol's Samba dress (with Matt C)
Aleesha's Cha Cha Cha dress
Karen's Freestyle dress (with Mark R)

Best 10 Songs
(This is really tricky but I'll try!!!)
'Live and Let Die' - Letitia and Darren's Paso Doble
'Aquarius' - Zoe and Ian's Samba
'Big Spender' - Darren and Lilia's Foxtrot
'Club Tropicana' - Carol and Matt's Samba
'Toxic' - Natasha and Brendan's Tango
'These Boots are made for Walking' - Penny and Ian's Samba
'I'm Still Standing' - Jill and Darren's Jive
'Walking in the Air' - Aled and Lilia's Christmas Samba
'Knock on Wood' - Gethin and Camilla's Jive
'Rhythm of the Night' - Louisa and Vincent's Samba/'Smiley Faces' - Louisa and Vincent's Jive

Tour of STRICTLY COME DANCING

WE ARE GOING FOR MY BIRTHDAY!!! 3RD OF FEB @ THE MEN ARENA IN MANCHESTER!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Final: Review

Both the couples danced their favourite Latin dance, favourite Ballroom dance, a dance to music picked by the judges, a group Vieniesse Waltz and a freestyle showdance:

Ballroom

1) Matt and Flavia - American Smooth
"For Once in my Life" by Michael Buble
My score = 8
Judge's score (average) = 9



2) Aleesha and Matt - Waltz
"A Time for Us" by Johnny Mathis
My score = 10
Judge's score (average) = 10




Latin

1) Matt and Flavia - Salsa
"Vehicle" by Carlos Oliva
My score = 10
Judge's score (average) = 10



2) Aleesha and Matt - Cha Cha Cha
"Crazy in Love" by Beyonce
My score = 10
Judge's score (average) = 10




Judge's Choice
"We Love to Boogie" by Marc Bolan

1) Matt and Flavia - Quickstep
My score = 8
Judge's score (average) = 9



2) Aleesha and Matt - Jive
My score = 10
Judge's score (average) = 9


Vieniesse Waltz
"This Year's Love" by David Gray






Freestyle Showdance

1) Matt and Flavia
"Are you gonna go my Way?" by Lenny Kravitz





2) Aleesha and Matt
"Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler




There was also a special feature by Brucie himself, called the Brucie Bonus. Featuring all the past dancers and celebrities from this series, Bruce sung "Cheek to Cheek" by Frank Sinatra.




All the past couples danced to their favourite dance:

1) Brian and Karen - Waltz
"Godfather Waltz" from the Godfather

2) Stephanie and Vincent - Quickstep
"Suddenly I See" by KT Tunstall

3) Willie and Erin - Waltz
"Run to You" by Whitney Housten

4) Gabby and James - Jive
"Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting" by Elton John

5) Dom and Lilia - Cha Cha Cha
"The Shoop Shoop Song" by Cher

6) Penny and Ian - Samba
"These Boots are made for Walking" by Nancy Sinatra

7) Kate and Anton - Paso Doble
"Somebody Told Me" by the Killers

8) John and Nicole - Salsa
"Ran Kan Kan" by Tito Puente

9) Kelly and Brendan - Vieniesse Waltz
"Delilah" by Tom Jones

10) Kenny and Ola - Paso Doble
"Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand

11) Letitia and Darren - Foxtrot
"Call Me Irresponsible" by Bobby Darin

12) Gethin and Camilla - Salsa
"Azucar" by Traditional

WINNERS OF 2007 - ALEESHA AND MATT