STRICTLY COME DANCING 7 - Week 2 (Part 1 & 2)

I didn't watch either episode of Strictly Come Dancing live this weekend, so I caught up with the dances as isolated BBC iPlayer replays (see below, for UK readers only). Therefore, feel free to add your comments about Week 2's shows; what the judges said, the Alesha Dixon debate (oh, if you must...), and all the group dances and performances I missed. But, here are my brief thoughts on the celebrity dances for Friday and Saturday's shows:

Natalie Cassidy & Vincent Simone

Tango: The hot pink ballroom dress was garish, but Natalie (forever Sonia from EastEnders to most people) performed quite well -- she at least sold the whole dance through her expressions and full commitment to the performance. I find these tango's can be quite dull and pretencious, though.

ChaChaCha: Y'know, confidence is key. Put Natalie in a cute silver dress with tassels, get her to show some leg, then get her to strut around the set with a big smile... and I have fun watching her, I have to admit.

Zoe Lucker & James Jordan

Waltz: Zoe's long blue dress was rather swish and I liked her hair, but there wasn't much to get very excited about.


Rumba: She looks like Sarah Harding's hot mum, and Zoe tore up the dance floor in a super-sex black dress and shredded skirt. Glamour, a cute blonde bob, great legs. Excellent.

Craig Kelly & Flavia Cacace

Tango: Flavia "abs of steel" Cacace is back for another year, kicking things off with a high-powered tango to "Jai Ho". Her white open-backed dress afforded some flashes of leg, but it was a little too odd for me.

Rumba: She's hot, but the dress was a disappointment; one of those glittery things that hide too much, although there were moments when Flav's long legs came free to slice the air.

Richard Dunwoody & Lilia Kopylova

Waltz: She gets overshadowed by scrummy Ola Jordan these days, but Lilia's still incredibly cute and she looked quite swish in a somewhat musty-coloured dress. Still very disappointing, but that's a waltz for you.

ChaChaCha: This was just the kind of fun, upbeat, sexy number Lilia excels at. Tiny, sparkly cyan mini-skirt with a silver thong, everything clinging to her shapely bod. What's not to like? Oh, yeah, Richard Dunwoody.

Laila Rouass & Anton Du Beke

Tango: A blood red dress with Laila's exotic looks, dancing a tango, was the perfect sight for the dance. Exactly what you expect and she did it very well, but it was a tad robotic for my taste.

ChaChaCha: A ting skirt, leggy, but a little bit too uncertain to exude the sexiness I think she was going for, sadly. But I'm sure she'll get a lot better.

Phil Tufnell & Katya Vershilas

Waltz: New girl Katya made a great impression in her elegant yellow, open-backed ballgown. Very smooth, beautiful and sophisticated.


ChaChaCha: Wow! Katya was wearing that skirt as a belt, it was so high. Really long legs and blonde hair, very twisty hips and a great attitude. Even better, Tuffers isn't letting her down too badly, so I reckon she'll be sticking around.

Jo Wood & Brendan Cole

Tango: Another oldie, so one for your grandad to gawp at perhaps. The black-brown dress was pretty hot and I like how Jo's retained a certain '60s flair, but it's hard to feel passionate.

Rumba: She likes her chocolate dresses, no? For a minute there I thought someone had dunked her in a Dairy Milk and left it to set, but let's not get into all that. If I was 25 years older, I'd have gotten more from Jo's leggy performance, but I can aprpeciate the mature beauty.

Ricky Whittle & Natalie Lowe

Waltz: Another new face to SCD, it's lovely Aussie Natalie Lowe in a sexy sea-green dress with tassels and airiness to spare. Very nice, if not very exciting.


Rumba: The hair was a bit electrified, but Natalie's a statuesque beauty wearing a golden puddle for a dress, so my attention was elsewhere. It seems Ricky's a contender for the final already, so we have him to thank for many more weeks of Nat!

THE DANCE-OFF

Oh, the cruelty. Flavia & Craig versus Lilia & Richard -- two of the show's sexier stars, up against each other already. And, despite my best attempts to psychically influence the judges (no, I don't believe in phone voting), Lilia was sent packing. This is another awfully early exit for the Russian minx, but the show bosses keep giving her some very suspect dance partners since her heyday earlier in SCD's run. How do they decide these things? She should complain, really. Lilia has the talent to win these shows with the right man, and now there'll be another Lilia deficiency as a result this year. A terrible shame.