Strictly Come Blogging: Sunday Service: Week 4

It was ladies' night once again this week on Strictly Come Dancing.

Christine & Matthew kicked off the show in energetic quickstepping fashion. I agreed with Len that the opening was a bit long, but the performance was lovely. Christine displayed lots of personality and her love of dance shines through. Her footwork was solid and the routine had good musicality. She needs to watch her left arm, which has a tendency to drop.

It was clear that Jodie & Ian had worked hard on their rumba. On the whole, she did a good job. The couple seemed to connect, which was good. The routine was right for her, and she was in control of her long limbs throughout most of the dance. She could have had a bit more hip action, but for someone who was finding it difficult to be sexy, I thought it was a good effort.

Heather & Brian gave a solid quickstep performance. The routine was within Heather's capabilities, but it lacked pizazz for me. Heather was nice and light on her feet and the pair covered the floor well.

Cherie & James' rumba was pitched perfectly. It was romantic, simple and elegant. The rumba is one of the hardest dances to sell to the audience, especially at a beginner level because it can be very dull without the speed and sharp turns that you see at competition standard. Yet one was totally swept away by Cherie & James' storytelling. Cherie is so elegant and has beautiful arms and legs which she controls so well. Her hip action was so natural. This could be the benchmark for future Strictly rumbas and could take its place in Strictly history with Jill & Darren's jive and Zoe & Ian's tango.

Jessie & Darren's quickstep was a little tentative. Jessie looked nervous throughout. But I think it was an improvement from the salsa. She needs to be more in control and not cling on to Darren so much. She also needs to watch her posture and avoid sticking her bottom out. She made a small error near the top which meant her nerves take over. She needs to learn to mentally shrug her shoulders if she makes a mistake, and make sure the rest of the routine is so good, the judges let her mistake go, or even don't see it.

Brendan went for the more showy style of rumba, but he had a lovely connection with Lisa, something that was totally missing in his rumba with Kelly last year. I loved the walks at the opening and close, and it was lovely to see a confident Lisa on the floor. I also loved the series of turns at the end, which Lisa executed very well. As with Cherie & James, the storytelling was engaging. I wished the dance could have been longer.

Rachel & Vincent's quickstep was easily the best quickstep of the evening. It was light, bright and energetic. Choreographically, it was spectacular and interesting with brilliant musicality. Again, I agreed with Len that it look too long to get into hold, but in spite of that, I did really like the opening and close. They covered the floor very well indeed. This is what all the quicksteps should have been.

It's a good thing the boys' group rueda wasn't being marked, because it was a bit chaotic and messy. It was fun to watch, but I thought their last group dance was better. The partner swapping was quite intriguing, mind you. And I liked the part where they lifted the girls up.

Cherie & James and Rachel & Vincent were top dogs once again. It was very unusual for the rumbas to steal the show, especially when up against the quickstep which is one of the most spectacular, but that's what happened this week.

Bottom for me were Jessie & Darren. But I'd love to see Jessie raise her game in the dance off. I'm not sure who else I would have put in the bottom two. Possibly Heather & Brian.

I can't wait for the proper competition to begin next week.

Here are the videos...

Christine & Matthew