Sunday Service: Week 9

Blackpool week. Can the Tower Ballroom live up to the hype it gets?

Jay & Aliona were up first with their salsa. I thought this was their best routine for a few weeks. Jay looked really relaxed on the floor. He was cool and suave, exactly what the salsa needs. The lifts were lovely, and Jay and Aliona had great chemistry. I really enjoyed the performance.

I felt that Jamelia couldn't keep up with the quickstep. She and Tristan flew around the floor, but it was a little messy, and there was a little gapping. Jamelia needs to point her toes more too. They were ugly hooks on the end of her legs. Something else, that wasn't Jamelia's fault, was the dress and hair. The skirt had so much material that it made the whole thing heavy, and likewise her hair was too long and had the same effect.

Anita did really well with the paso. Her flamenco styling was excellent, her arms were beautiful. She delivered lots of drama. But I didn't really like Gleb's choreography. There was too much posing, and way too much floor work. Gleb seemed to spend half the dance picking Anita up from the floor. I hadn't seen anyone swept around the floor that much since Ann Widdecombe.

The first half of Katie & Anton's American smooth was glorious. Katie looked beautiful, and her foxtrot was beautiful. It could only have been improved by releasing her toes. And there were move pivots, because we know she's good at those. If in doubt, pivot. But then there were a couple of small errors. Something happened getting into the first lift. Something looked odd in the running promenades. And she lost her balance just before the end. If she had nailed everything, it would have been a show-stopper. Instead, it was just very good.

I thought Peter & Janette's jive was pretty inoffensive, but not very interesting. His technique wasn't very good. His timing was off in places. Bruno was right on the money with his comment that the style of the dance was lost. You couldn't tell what it was supposed to be at times. Everything is just Peter style.

I loved Georgia & Giovanni's American smooth. The choreography was fantastic. They covered the floor well and made the Viennese waltz element look easy. The only thing which spoil the routine was the backing dancers. Yes, the backing dancer controversy continues. They almost didn't get Georgia up into the lift. So why do we even need them? I celebrity like Georgia lights up the room, and is a stunning dancer. She doesn't need backing dancers to detract form her.

I thought Helen & Aljaž's Charleston got off to a great start. Helen was made for that 1930s styling. She's so elegant. But I started to get bored about halfway through. And Helen started to lose it a little. Her timing was a bit iffy on one on the kick sections. She nearly fell up the starts, and there was another little error before the final lift. And the ending was very anti-climactic. She just didn't do it for me this week.

I really liked Kellie & Kevin's quickstep. It was so effortless. The covered the large floor so well. They were so together. One of the best moments was the Charleston section. She was so in sync with all of the backing dancers, it was amazing. They should Len's Lens that for all to see and appreciate. I loved the Dolly styling of her hair and dress too. This was possibly the only dance of the night where the backing dancers enhanced the routine. I really enjoyed it.

My favourite of the night was Kellie, but I enjoyed Georgia and Jay too, and Katie to an extent, and Anita couldn't be faulted on performance. The bottom two were easily Peter and Jamelia. And based on last night's performance, there could be a chance that Jamelia might survive another dance-0ff. There was less wrong technically with Jamelia's performance last night than Peter's. It might actually come down to Len's vote for once. I can't wait to find out!

Here are the videos...

Jay & Aliona



Jamelia & Tristan



Anita & Gleb



Katie & Anton



Peter & Janette



Georgia & Giovanni



Helen & Aljaž



Kellie & Kevin