It’s Quarter-Final time for our six remaining couples and, with only five places available in next week’s Semi-Final, you’d have thought the tension couldn’t get any higher. But this week there was an added factor for our dancing duos to prep like crazy for – the Waltz-a-Thon. With another six points up for grabs for the couple who displayed the best Waltz technique, a good first dance was only half the story…
It was Caroline and Pasha at the top of the Leaderboard again after their intense and dramatic Argentine Tango matched their nearly perfect score from last week’s Turkish-inspired Charleston – 39 out of 40. Bruno likened Caroline to a Stradivarius violin – ‘in the hands of an expert, you can work magic!’
For Jake and Janette it was the other way round this week – they swapped last week’s ‘Greek tragedy’ Argentine Tango for a charming Circus-themed Charleston, and the about face certainly improved their score. Bruno described the routine as ‘a riot of surreal slapstick’ and Darcey loved the imaginative lifts and energy. The J-Team received 38 from the judges.
Simon and Kristina had kicked off proceedings with a stylish American Smooth to Heart Ache Tonight by Michael Buble. Len’s praise was the most fulsome, describing the boy from Blue and the lady in red’s routine as ‘proper lush’. Bruno was equally impressed, telling the twosome they could ‘open in Vegas with that number!’ Overall Team Sytina received 35 from the judges.
Pixie and Trent’s psychedelic Sixties-themed Cha Cha to ‘Love Shack’ had Darcey enthusing about the couple’s zest and energy, Bruno loved their exuberance and Craig described the routine as ‘spectacular’. But Len had a stern warning for all our contestants, saying that any illegal lifts next week would be penalised. They also received 35 points.
Mark and Karen’s romantic Foxtrot to 'L-O-V-E' by Nat King Cole had Len defending the duo, saying ‘If you’re the underdog, that dog’s got plenty of bite!’ They were the third couple to received 35 points.
At the bottom of the table were Frankie and Kevin, whose zinging Salsa to 'Work' by Kelly Rowland was described by Craig as ‘a little haphazard’ and by Len as ‘a bit rough around the edges’. Darcey praised it as ‘hot, spicy and packed full of moves’, while Bruno said it had more ingredients than a recipe from MastereChef!’ Sitting just one point below the three pairs above them, Team Frankie and Kevin got 34 out of 40.
But that was before the Waltz-a-Thon…
With six extra points at stake, it was a tense Waltz around the dance floor for our pairs, but Darcey was quick to praise them for their floorcraft in avoiding each other and Bruno wanted to acknowledge the skill of all six of the couples. Overall it was Pixie and Trent who caught the judges’ eye and received top marks, pushing them one point above Jake, Simon and Frankie. Caroline and Pasha received three points and stayed top of the table, while Mark and Karen’s two points left them bottom overall.
