Strictly Christmas special
Dec. 28th, 2025 08:00 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shallownessWatched on catch up. Nice opening group number, where everyone was well dressed. The celebs got introduced, then there was a preparing-for-Christmas lunch narrative with cutleryography and a bit of actual dancing from the celebs.
Tess was in a white trouser and jacket suit, sprinkled with silver, while Claudia wore a cream wrap dress. Ellie and Harry from this year’s cast were in the audience. Motsi was the sparkliest judge, and the judges actually danced in sync!
The couples were properly introduced, and Babatunde and Nancy looked like the ones wardrobe hated, but they would be performing a Charleston. The VT had Nancy following Babatunde’s instructions to wind up the cast, especially Craig.
He! was a naughty elf. She! was a child trying to sleep. It was a recognisable if underpowered Charleston from him, with some messing about with wrapping paper that ripped. Craig offered one piece of critique, but was mainly nice and gave out one less point than the others, which would be the pattern for most of the show.
In a nod to the running gag this season, we had a bit with the judges as carollers.
Melanie and Kai were dancing a style I didn’t quite catch until after they’d danced. Ah, theatre jazz, apparently, or an excuse not to have her in hold at all. She revealed she has scoliosis in the VT. Her performance was enthusiastic if not graceful, and she had more or less mastered the umbrella. Shirley went mad, even allowing for Christmas inflation, and gave it a 10.
Brian from Westlife and Michelle would be performing a jive, we were informed, but before that, Tess got to do some Argentine tango steps with Aljiaz. Aww. ‘Her little face!’
There was a strong rock and roll vibe to the jive, Brian got better once he joined Michelle on the dancefloor, though I thought the height difference between them was too great. The lifts were good, and it was better than the two previous dances and got a higher score than them. Michelle disclaimed any responsibility for what Brian did on the judges’ table.
Jodie revealed that she’s deaf with a cochlear implant in her VT, where she and Neil broke a daft Christmas world record together. They were performing street commercial, and I thought the choreography was really clever, tailored for her strengths (quite literally), but also being about her backstory. Really cool highlights, and, unlike Brian, she had no trouble taking the stairs to the Clauditorium*, where she revealed that she’d just lost her dad a week ago, which must have been so tough (also, didn’t Neil lose his father this year?) – she seemed a bit shellshocked.
Nicholas and Luba would be doing a Viennese waltz, and because he’s been in Eastenders, they went to the set with a recurring Santa for the VT. It started with a gorgeous lift, he styled it out like an actor. I thought it was a bit skippy, but I didn’t see gapping, and the judges seemed impressed, it made Motsi switch to German. Equal score with Brian.
We then had a Love Actually inspired skit featuring Dave Arch and Claudia. A rumba (again a nod to this series) means a hug on this Strictly Christmas special.
Last to dance, Scarlett and Vito doing the cha cha. Scarlett’s son was clearly too young to play ball in the VT where he was meant to be meeting the Strictly Santa, but wandered off, unimpressed. AnyWAY, that was a really creditable proper cha cha, performed with confidence and good leg action. Craig delivered a ‘fab-u-lous’ with no critiques, and gave it a Christmas 10, meaning they got a Christmas 40.
Vito and Michelle got praise from the judges for their choreo. We were reminded that the judges’ votes didn’t count, and it was down to the studio audience.
Blue sang a restrained version of ‘One Love’ in suits, while the dancing from Lauren and Nadiya (in sparkly white dresses) and Neil and Vito was lovely. Actually, Vito and Nadiya were better than that.
I was really touched by Jodie’s dance, but Scarlett’s was my favourite, and the studio audience agreed. Much hilarity from the winners. (They’ll have to give Vito a good’un next year.)
Fun closing group number, with a lot of dancing from the pros, with Nancy enjoying being centre of the screen a lot. Tess and Claud were brought on to stand still as everyone else danced around them. Recognition that this would be their last time presenting this together on screen from them. Motsi came to hug them, while Anton and Shirley went for a big flourish, but again (although this was filmed before the final), we ended with the camera on TessnClaud.
* What WILL we call it?
Tess was in a white trouser and jacket suit, sprinkled with silver, while Claudia wore a cream wrap dress. Ellie and Harry from this year’s cast were in the audience. Motsi was the sparkliest judge, and the judges actually danced in sync!
The couples were properly introduced, and Babatunde and Nancy looked like the ones wardrobe hated, but they would be performing a Charleston. The VT had Nancy following Babatunde’s instructions to wind up the cast, especially Craig.
He! was a naughty elf. She! was a child trying to sleep. It was a recognisable if underpowered Charleston from him, with some messing about with wrapping paper that ripped. Craig offered one piece of critique, but was mainly nice and gave out one less point than the others, which would be the pattern for most of the show.
In a nod to the running gag this season, we had a bit with the judges as carollers.
Melanie and Kai were dancing a style I didn’t quite catch until after they’d danced. Ah, theatre jazz, apparently, or an excuse not to have her in hold at all. She revealed she has scoliosis in the VT. Her performance was enthusiastic if not graceful, and she had more or less mastered the umbrella. Shirley went mad, even allowing for Christmas inflation, and gave it a 10.
Brian from Westlife and Michelle would be performing a jive, we were informed, but before that, Tess got to do some Argentine tango steps with Aljiaz. Aww. ‘Her little face!’
There was a strong rock and roll vibe to the jive, Brian got better once he joined Michelle on the dancefloor, though I thought the height difference between them was too great. The lifts were good, and it was better than the two previous dances and got a higher score than them. Michelle disclaimed any responsibility for what Brian did on the judges’ table.
Jodie revealed that she’s deaf with a cochlear implant in her VT, where she and Neil broke a daft Christmas world record together. They were performing street commercial, and I thought the choreography was really clever, tailored for her strengths (quite literally), but also being about her backstory. Really cool highlights, and, unlike Brian, she had no trouble taking the stairs to the Clauditorium*, where she revealed that she’d just lost her dad a week ago, which must have been so tough (also, didn’t Neil lose his father this year?) – she seemed a bit shellshocked.
Nicholas and Luba would be doing a Viennese waltz, and because he’s been in Eastenders, they went to the set with a recurring Santa for the VT. It started with a gorgeous lift, he styled it out like an actor. I thought it was a bit skippy, but I didn’t see gapping, and the judges seemed impressed, it made Motsi switch to German. Equal score with Brian.
We then had a Love Actually inspired skit featuring Dave Arch and Claudia. A rumba (again a nod to this series) means a hug on this Strictly Christmas special.
Last to dance, Scarlett and Vito doing the cha cha. Scarlett’s son was clearly too young to play ball in the VT where he was meant to be meeting the Strictly Santa, but wandered off, unimpressed. AnyWAY, that was a really creditable proper cha cha, performed with confidence and good leg action. Craig delivered a ‘fab-u-lous’ with no critiques, and gave it a Christmas 10, meaning they got a Christmas 40.
Vito and Michelle got praise from the judges for their choreo. We were reminded that the judges’ votes didn’t count, and it was down to the studio audience.
Blue sang a restrained version of ‘One Love’ in suits, while the dancing from Lauren and Nadiya (in sparkly white dresses) and Neil and Vito was lovely. Actually, Vito and Nadiya were better than that.
I was really touched by Jodie’s dance, but Scarlett’s was my favourite, and the studio audience agreed. Much hilarity from the winners. (They’ll have to give Vito a good’un next year.)
Fun closing group number, with a lot of dancing from the pros, with Nancy enjoying being centre of the screen a lot. Tess and Claud were brought on to stand still as everyone else danced around them. Recognition that this would be their last time presenting this together on screen from them. Motsi came to hug them, while Anton and Shirley went for a big flourish, but again (although this was filmed before the final), we ended with the camera on TessnClaud.
* What WILL we call it?
