The Strictly Sweep – Week 11
So that was the semi-final. Did you enjoy it? Exciting enough for you? It isn’t often you get oerfect scores for two separate couples in one evening. Not only that, but perfect scores for dances that aren’t seen as “the celebrity’s friend” – assuming any of them can be seen in such a fashion that is. And yet, even though the rest of the room was “just wild about Harry”, there was a loan dissenting voice in the room in the ubiquitous form of Judge Craig, who didn’t get his “10″ paddle out for either Harry & Aliona’s charleston or viennese waltz, giving them a score of 39 for both. No doubt there were myriad Paddingtonian hard stares from the audience both in the studio and watching at home at this, but as we know Judge Craig is not to be cowed by anyone. Except possibly Robbie thrusting at him while standing on the desk. No, it was left to first Chelsee & Pasha and their paso doble, followed by Jason & Kristina’s argentine tango, that led to Judge Craig blowing the dust off his paddle. While both of them were fantastic, Jason & Kristina perhaps deserve a special mention. It isn’t often that a routine leads to comments like:
I’d put that woman on an assault charge
That was ‘death by Kristina’
I don’t think there’s any doubt that Kristina was throwing herself into the role in that particular routine. I don’t usually attach videos to these posts, but if you haven’t seen it, then it does deserve watching again.
And so it was that we had our bottom two and, with the double elimination before the final, there was no second chance for either Alex & James or Holly & Artem. While I’m neutral in terms of who it is I want to see win the cash and chocolate, I am of the opinion that the best three couples have got to the final (thus proving once again that, while the Great British Public may see Strictly as an entertainment show, they recognise that it is also a competition and that skill should be rewarded). And so, if you had either Alex & James or Holly & Artem in the sweep, then you’ve fallen at the final hurdle.
Moving to the leagues, we find that Chelsee & Pasha have again retained top spot in the main competition, with their lead extended to 14 points over Harry & Aliona, while the third finalists, Jason & Kristina, are now almost 40 points off the lead that they held for so long. In the ballroom table, Alex & James have taken top spot with a 17 point lead over Jason & Kristina, with Harry & Aliona moving up to third. In the latin league Chelsee & Pasha have again retained top spot, with Jason & Kristina 13 points behind in second and Harry & Aliona lurking a point further back in third.
In the minor competitions, Harry & Aliona have slightly increased their lead in the average score competition to 0.25 of a point over Chelsee & Pasha, while their six 10s gives them a total of 13 which is four clear of Chelsee & Pasha’s 9. However, in the highest weekly score competition, it is still Jason & Kristina that hold on thanks to their 33 from Week 2, which remains the highest unequalled score so far. Assuming that there is not a complete fall off in the quality of the competitors, with the highest score in the final being just 34, then I’m ready to call the winner of the highest individual score competition as Jason & Kristina. Obviously this is a provisional result that would need to be confirmed, but if you have Jason & Kristina then you can expect a chocolatey prize to be winging its way to you some time next week.
So, it all comes down to this. The final. Each couple attempting four dances, including an anything goes showdance. And this time, although the judges will be scoring, they will have no say whatever in who wins Strictly Come Dancing. Lifting the Glitterball Trophy is 100% decided by the public vote. So, if you want one of the couples to win, you’d best pick up the phone on Saturday and choose. Paticularly if you also want to win some cash. The final starts at 7.00pm on BBC1. Just in case you wanted to watch.
Chairman Pip’s Railway Thoughts Strictly League 2011
| Dancers | Points |
| Chelsee/Pasha | 799 |
| Harry/Aliona | 785 |
| Jason/Kristina | 762 |
| Holly/Artem | 740 |
| Alex/James | 721 |
| Robbie/Ola | 586 |
| Anita/Robin | 551 |
| Russell/Flavia | 469 |
| Lulu/Brendan | 422 |
| Audley/Natalie | 376 |
| Rory/Erin | 318 |
| Nancy/Anton | 224 |
| Dan/Katya | 204 |
| Edwina/Vincent | 136 |
For the ballroom and latin leagues, the tables look like this: Celebrations Ballroom League
| Alex/James | 195 |
| Jason/Kristina | 178 |
| Harry/Aliona | 174 |
| Chelsee/Pasha | 172 |
| Holly/Artem | 160 |
| Robbie/Ola | 149 |
| Audley/Natalie | 116 |
| Russell/Flavia | 93 |
| Anita/Robin | 91 |
| Rory/Erin | 83 |
| Lulu/Brendan | 72 |
| Dan/Katya | 58 |
| Nancy/Anton | 52 |
| Edwina/Vincent | 29 |
Roses Latin League
| Chelsee/Pasha | 289 |
| Jason/Kristina | 276 |
| Harry/Aliona | 275 |
| Holly/Artem | 264 |
| Anita/Robin | 221 |
| Alex/James | 214 |
| Robbie/Ola | 168 |
| Russell/Flavia | 156 |
| Lulu/Brendan | 155 |
| Audley/Natalie | 83 |
| Rory/Erin | 66 |
| Nancy/Anton | 66 |
| Dan/Katya | 61 |
| Edwina/Vincent | 52 |
