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Thank you and a glittery goodnight
Feels good to have Strictly properly back, doesn’t it? Autumn is truly upon us.
We’ll be back for the first elimination weekend, which starts at the slightly earlier time of 6.20pm next Saturday. I hope you’ll rejoin me then. In the meantime, I’m @michaelhogan on Twitter/so-called X. Please do jive kick and flick your way past and say hello.
Thanks for watching along with me and all your wise, witty contributions. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, sparkly squadron. And it almost goes without saying: keeeeeep dancing! Up the Red Roses and take care.
Finally, Gardener_Maidhc says of Karen Carney: “Carlos’ ‘My mum says I’m fabulous’ training T-shirt is great. We need these now for all the pro dancers.”
Holmer says: “That was an extraordinary dance from Karen Carney! I expected something very middling and clunky, but that was fantastic! 9 from me.”
styletraveller says: “Love this and in true football fashion, she gave it 110%.”
KarimaKat adds: “Wow, fab by Karen and Carlos! More of this sort of stuff. A proper non-dancer rising to the challenge. Go her, Jimmy and Alex!”
Karen Carney. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.07 EDT
Pancake01 says of Amber Davies: “Well, she’s just gorgeous, isn’t she? She has very long arms compared to the rest of her.”
indigoviolet says: “Nikita’s the king of instant chemistry, isn’t he?”
Jennifera030 adds: “This lass must be internally freaking out. Can you imagine? She was probably planning to get a takeaway tonight and now she’s in Strictly. All power to her for being able to do that dance.”
Nikita Kuzmin and Amber Davies. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.11 EDT
Poppieshen says of Thomas Skinner: “Tom toilet break everyone! Maybe next week, they’ll put him on halfway through for this very reason.”
Susanmarykelly says: “Well, he certainly managed to walk pretty much in time to the music.”
ReclinedPotato adds: “That Thomas Crapper guy is giving some strong John Sargeant energy right there!”
Thomas Skinner and Amy Dowden. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.12 EDT
IvanTiger says of Balvinder Sopal: “She’s a good mover and very elegant. Julian looks fun. Nice pairing.”
ReclinedPotato says of La Voix: “Honestly, La Voix is kind of the lift the show needed at this point. Her turn at the judging panel is what I’ve been waiting for most. They need to get to Blackpool!”
acanthe adds: “Mr Acanthe took slight exception when I said that I was sure we’d all like to listen to Aljaz more with our bodies.”
La Voix. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.13 EDT
On Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, YodaknowsAll says: “ know it’s a low bar but Jimmy is already better than 90% of the footballers on Strictly. A few mistakes but another one who sold the performance. An unexpected delight.”
On Vicky Pattison, Pengolina123 says: “Turbo Sloth is my new favourite term.”
SecretPuddleJumper adds: “I hope Kai gets as far with Vicky as he did with AJ Odudu. He obviously works best with bubbly northern women.”
Kai Widdrington and Vicky Pattison. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.13 EDT
On George Clarke, Tomatopincushion says: “Not a fan of ‘content creators’ but that was cute.”
Somersetlass adds: “Wow, I was not expecting that from Content Creator George. Some lovely musicality, smooth moves and great lifts. I agree with Craig. He definitely has potential and seems a sweetie too. This is, or should be, what Strictly is all about.”
George Clarke and Alexis Warr. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.14 EDT
On Lewis Cope, Jennifera030 says: “Wow. All kinds of fabulous but too much, too soon.”
Poppieshen adds: “I don’t care about ‘ringers’. Without them we’d be watching dad dancing and two left feet until Halloween.”
ReclinedPotato says of Ross King: “I’m old enough to remember Ross on Pebble Mill At One. Thankfully, I’m also old enough to forget that routine almost immediately.”
Lewis Cope. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.15 EDT
joanieloves says: “Ellie Goldstein is a ray of sunshine and just what we need right now. If Vito can control some of her enthusiasm, she’ll be fab.”
Storm adds: “I want Vito to encourage me the way he’s doing now whenever I have something difficult to do (literally anything!).”
Ellie Goldstein and Vito Coppola. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.15 EDT
Irreverentnurse says of Nitro: “Harry has great posture and moves. Don’t peak too soon with the crying.”
On Stefan Dennis, MikeMoonlight says: “If he’s going to perform Neighbours-inspired dances, then it would be good to see one based on Bouncer’s dream or Jim Robinson and Doug Willis’s magic mushroom trip experience.”
Stefan Dennis and Dianne Buswell. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.16 EDT
On Alex Kingston, SnailyWhaley says: “I love Alex and think she’ll be great but that was surely more faffing abaht than Viennese Waltz?”
Gardener_Maidhc says: “Not perfect but oh so glamorous. Alex just oozes charisma and she is acting the sh*t out of this dance. Bodes very well for the future.”
SecretPuddleJumper adds: “Photo last week, training room this week. The dog thing is escalating rapidly. I predict he’ll be on the dancefloor by week 4.”
Johannes Radebe and Alex Kingston. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.17 EDT
On Chris Robshaw, MikeMoonlight says: “I really wish these random blokes would stop wandering onto the dancefloor when Nadiya is performing her solo routines.”
LazyMillennial adds: “Poor bloke. Gets forced on first for some rugby synergy and is given the samba of all things for his first dance, despite being hopeless.”
Chris Robshaw and Nadiya Bychkova. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC/PAShare
Updated at 17.18 EDT
Readers’ verdicts
A rapid-fire round-up of your sage words. Lidoswimmer says “As per every year I was thinking ‘I’ll wait a couple of weeks until the duffers have gone and the show’s less than two hours, then I’ll get into it’ – yet here I am, drawn in by the sheer gravitational pull of a million sequins.”
Whistledownthewind says “That opening dance was an absolute hoot! However, looking at Anton, I am left wondering whether an Elvis Presley impersonator in the home counties area is missing a wig.”
ShareThis year’s first Golden Glitterballs
They’re back, back, back by public demand. Well, sort of. At the end of each live show, we traditionally dish out some imaginary but highly coveted gongs to the night’s highlights and low points. Let me know if you agree with my choices. Drum roll please *squints at autocue while fumbling nervously with envelope*…
Best dance: It has to be that showstopping jive from Karen Carney, with Lewis Cope in second.
Worst dance: Dear old Ross King but Thomas Skinner’s old el paso really wasn’t much better.
Best music choice: One Way Or Another and Chelsea Dagger both rocked. Pink Pony Club was also fresh and fun.
Worst music choice: That plodding version of Shake Your Booty didn’t do Balvinder any favours.
Best outfit: Amy Dowden’s frock was fabulous.
Worst outfit: Ross and Jowita’s star-spangled messes. Team with fur coat and sparkly trousers for full frightmare.
Best judges’ comment: Motsi to Ross King: “You’ve never danced, ever. And you still haven’t.”
Best Claudia quip: Good toilet and pant bantz but the prize goes to her improvisation when Tess wasn’t ready for a link. “Tess? Not yet. Hey, there’s no rush. Balvinder, how’s your week been? I enjoyed that, let’s do it again.”
Updated at 16.41 EDT
From jives to Jokers
TV viewers can now stay on BBC1 for Anthony Horowitz’s new tongue-in-cheek mystery thriller Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue, starring no less than Eric “Will from Will & Grace” McCormack and Siobhán “Sister Michael from Derry Girls” McSweeney.
Over on BBC2, it’s Banned in the 80s: Moments That Shook Music. Film-wise, tonight’s picks are Joker (9pm on ITV1), Mean Girls (10pm on ITV2+1) and excellent Japanese drama Evil Does Not Exist (10.05pm on BBC4).
ShareFirst leaderboard of 2025
So Karen Carney sits atop the year’s inaugural leaderboard, with Lewis Cope in second spot. Ross King is way down at the bottom, with Chris Robshaw and Thomas Skinner just above.
Scores will be carried over to next week, combined with their second dance and the viewer vote, then the bottom two couples will dance-off for survival. Looks like a male celebrity will go but which one?
ShareCredits roll
“Keeeeeep dancing,” trill Tess and Claud for the first time this year. As the glitter confetti gets swept up by whistling Elstree caretakers with brooms, please stay with us for analysis, reaction and a round-up of your comments.