Sunday Service: Week 4

What a night of dancing last night! Some weeks you don't need a theme. All of the numbers just click, and last night was one of those nights.

I could have lived without the dentist theme for Ellie & Nikita's salsa – I’m just glad she got to remove her white coat in the first few seconds. The routine had ambitious lifts and was pretty clean choreographically. Ellie was very sassy, as always in the Latin numbers. I don’t think it was Ellie’s best week, but it was pretty good. Shoe could have had a bit more rotation in the hips, but pretty good overall.

I loved Will & Nancy’s rumba. The storytelling was gorgeous. It wasn’t technically perfect, but I still loved it. It was sensual but also tough. For a man who didn’t get much training time this week, I think Will did a decent job. I love their chemistry. They can do fun, sexy and now pain and sorrow. I love them together.

Having an Elvis themed jive helped to disguise Matt's inturned knees and feet. I can see improvement, but it was clear than Nadiya was totally leading this dance herself and couldn't really rely on him to provide the resistance she needs to perform her steps. There was a point in the dance where he actually smiled and looked as though he was having fun and it was disarming. More of that please, Matt! Len would call him a tryer, and he’s certainly committed to everything he does.

Once again, I respect the message that Jayde & Karen were putting across of grief and celebration of those no longer with us. But that cannot excuse all of toe leads in Jayde's American smooth. Her top half is wonderful – beautiful arms and hands, and good posture and frame. She leads well. But her feet leave a lot to be desired. Toe leads, flat footed, lacked rise and fall. She really needs to start working on the detail. Personality is not enough to make it to the end.

Mollie & Carlos' routine didn't have enough cha cha content for me. It was quite a way in before I could figure out what routine it was. (I'll admit that sometimes I don't take on board everything in the week, or even in the intro.) The judges liked it more than I did. Molly’s performance was as strong as every week, but I felt that she got lost in a week of breakout performances. She should be high enough on the leaderboard to go through, but this routine was forgettable.

This was a better week for James & Amy. His quickstep had decent footwork. His posture still needs work, as he still has a tendency to hunch into Amy a bit. But otherwise it was relaxed and easy on the eye. Definitely his best dance so far. He seems to be enjoying himself more now. Room to improve, but he’s on the right track.

Fleur & Vito. One hundred percent redemption. That Argentine tango proved why she should stay in the competition. And was a massive 'F you' to Shirley, who said she would have saved Richie last week. Hot, clean, intense, moody, strong, sexy. Everything. 

Kym & Graziano's samba had nice content, nice movement. Lots of recognisable steps. We don't see enough samba rolls anymore so it was good to see them here. This was a very decent performance for a novice. Samba is really hard, and she made it look pretty good. I love that Kym has found her mojo. I’m enjoying watching her.

Tony continues to improve. Their routine had some decent Viennese waktx content, and it was danced well. Katya is a lift maniac. She pushes lifts to the max, is not afraid of taking literal risks, and they just about pulled it off. Enjoyable to watch.

Hamza is just fantastic. It was a brilliant salsa. He is such a good lead, relaxed and confident. Looked great himself while also presenting Jovita. The the lifts were showstopping. They trust each other. It's a great partnership.

I enjoyed Helen & Gorka’s flamenco take on the paso. It had a different feel to other pasos, and it looked more romantic than strong and fiery. I really liked it. I think the judges were a little hard on her performance. She's getting more confident every week. But who wouldn't with Gorka cheerleading and telling you that you're amazing. I'd like a recording of that speech so I can play it to myself in times when I lack confidence.

Ellie & Johannes' Viennese waltz was lovely, but it got totally lost among all of everything else on the night. She’s so much better in ballroom than latin. Lovely flekerl, lovely rotation. I fear that like Richie last week, the theme may have totally stitched her up.

Tyler & Dianne's 'Couples' Choice' commerical routine felt like a little bit of an anti-climaz after everything else. It had some clever moves and lifts, but just wasn't as capitvating as dances earlier in the evening. The ‘megamix’ aspect actually made it seem shorter than the other dances, but it obviously wasn’t.

My favourites of the night were Hamza and Fleur. Both were just amazing.

It's so difficult to pick a bottom two. Matt, despite working hard is not a natural dancer and is still the bottom of the pack. But I'm not sure who I'd put with him. Perhaps James or Tony. It's getting really tough already. Ellie T, Ellie S and even Mollie could have easily have got lost among all of the excitement of last night's routines.