Episode 23 Strictly - It Takes Two

Welcome to It Takes Two. It is Wednesday. Tonight, I have three

superstar partnerships on the sofa. They are Denise and James. APPLAUSE

Fresh from their Brazilian Samba, Louis and Flavia are here. APPLAUSE

And our very own Vegas showgirl with her Vegas showboy, Victoria

and Brendan are here. APPLAUSE My ex-is here - Ian Waite is here!

Live from Television Centre, this is Strictly: It Takes Two. Please

welcome your host, Zoe Ball! APPLAUSE

Hello and welcome to Wednesday It Takes Two. We are down to our top

ten. Today we get our first look at how our couples are getting on with

their new dances. With Wembley around the corner, they are pulling

out all the stops to impress. Here is a reminder of how Victoria and

Brendan have brought some Vegas to Shepherd's Bush.

To come up here on this and dance in front of millions of people, I

think is very brave and very commendable. Oh yes, Victoria does

Vegas! The problem started when you went to the dancefloor. It was

Laszlo with a hangover! -- Las Vegas with a hangover! I thought it

was glumpish. You are a true showgirl. You lose your focus at

the very end. That is the only thing! I had a shaky Las Vegas

hangover. I have wanted one of them for years! They have recovered.

Victoria and Brendan are here. APPLAUSE Ace Samba on Saturday

night. Did you enjoy it? I was terrified. Really? Terrified about

it. Why particularly this week? Was it the dance? Was it too

complicated? The dance is pretty tough. But also I just had one of

those weeks where nothing seemed to go in my brain. I couldn't get the

stops. I didn't feel confident. Oh gosh, I can't watch it! Have you

watched it back? I haven't watched it back! Really?! LAUGHTER It is

not that bad. It is all right. I can't! It was quite a bold move

to start on the judges' desk. I am taking that wasn't your idea?

did ask permission, I said, "Do you want to do this?" All right.

thought the desk was wider! I'm going to step off into somebody's

lap by mistake. I was hoping for that! That must be scary. You have

four people sitting underneath your dress, I can understand that would

be quite terrifying. Later on, it seemed you were possessed with the

spirit of the Samba. But by the time you got up to Tess' area, you

couldn't stop yourself! LAUGHTER You have to laugh. Look althe

wiggle. Tess -- at the wiggle. Tess... Craig said, "You coped

quite well". What did you make of that as a comment? I was very

pleased that he thought I coped quite well. We knew it wasn't going

to be a fantastic routine. We had one of those weeks that you don't

want to remember. It wasn't good. We have moved on from that. We have

moved on. We are all happy. Before you move on one last time, I want

to show you this VT. Brendan was so good at helping you through it in

Hey! Hey! You ready for a session? You are a dancer. Become the dancer

you want to be. You are going to be a dancer. You are a dancer. I'm not

a dancer. It is time to start thinking like one. You can become

the inner dancer you know you want to be. There you go. That was so

good. Take your time. This is good. Good stuff! Fantastic, fantastic! I

That's amazing. You are so good at your job! LAUGHTER You are so good

at your job! You spend a lot of time, seven, six hours a day,

sometimes the stuff you come up with is ridiculous. Madness is what

it is! Quickstep this week. Victoria, compose yourself. Are you

enjoying it more? SNORTING No snorting! Love bg it. It's been

really good -- loving it. It's been really good fun. How does it look?

That was day one. That's good. fun. I am looking forward to it.

That was day two, yesterday. One of your favourites, are you pleased

with it? We have a fantastic bit of music. It's got that thing, it's

got that zest... A bit of magic. get a smile on my face. And a

tickle... I'm sorry?! Not from me! Legs! Of course(!) You admitted

this ballroom style suits you more. Is the choreography getting more

complex? Yes, it is. I have always got the fact that I can grab on to

Brendan and he can drag me around the dancefloor if it goes wrong,

which is reassuring. I pushed the boat out on this one. This is

difficult. I know she can do it. You know she can do it? Yes. It is

Wembley calling if you get through this. You have had massive public

support behind you for the Olympics. How important is it for Strictly?

I'm so grateful to everyone for voting. We were second from the

bottom and we were saved. Thank you. My Mum can't vote. She is not here.

We need the extra ones. quickstep could be the one for you

this week. Good luck. Thank you. APPLAUSE It's time to find out how

the ladies are shaping up in the first of our double dose - I'm a

dancer - I wish I was - of the He really is a dancer! No costume

this week, please welcome Ian Waite. APPLAUSE You have your own legs on

today. I know. All in proportion! We are heading towards the half-way

point of the competition. It is really hotting up. Speaking from

experience, what will our pros be doing right now? They will probably

be putting in more hours now. Obviously, they have to perform

better. All the celebrities are getting better, even the ones that

were slow starting, they are starting to improve. It is kind of

evening out. If you have a bad show, you might go out. So you have to

keep it snappy. Yes. Dani and Vincent, fantastic last week. This

week, the tango. This looks seriously fast. How is she doing?

Great dance because she's got Vincent, which is great. She makes

very good lines. What I would like her to do - if I get my wand out...

The wand is out! APPLAUSE I would like to keep this - I have told you

this before - talking about things this before - talking about things

to try and make things... I want to make a vase shape. You keep the

base in. And keep the top wide. Sorry about that(!) Think about

your head as being a flower in a vase. Basically, she's got to reach

out like that. We understand, yeah? You can do this thing... You always

used to say that to me and I thought it was a head in a vice!

Kimberley and Pasha shone in the salsa. Back to ballroom for her and

a Viennese waltz. It is a difficult dance. There is a lot of turn in it.

They are kind of walking through the steps. She is hanging on a bit

to him. I would like to show you this. She is making this look

effortless. What is it called? is an Eros, basically. Of course!

She is doing it very easily. The ending... She fell off a bit there.

They will sort that out. LAUGHTER Yeah, probably it will be a good

dance for her. Lisa and Robin are doing a foxtrot. How is Lisa

getting on? Now, her flow across the floor is very good. Good.

Although, I think it could be improved if she releases her toes

when she goes backwards. Release the toes! Explain what you mean.

When she is moving backwards, you always release your toes so you

move on to the back foot more efficiently. If you keep the toe on

the floor, you are not going to move so easily. OK. Also, she does

a reverse turn into a reverse weave, so when she does that, she needs to

be doing proper heel leads. I know she is wearing boots again this

week. He doesn't like it! No. She's got a few flat feet. Proper shoes.

Fern and Artem are doing a salsa. Is it going to be saucy? She seems

to be embracing the character. the skirt! Look at those pins!

is wearing a nice short skirt. She is getting into the rhythm of it. I

wanted to stop it here and emphasise this. She is not - I

won't be her favourite person. won't love you for that(!) There's

a few points - one, two and three. First point is she needs to raise

her hips, get her hips up, point two get the knees together. Hips up,

knees together. We know what you mean! And heels up as well and feet

together. That sounds so tricky. Come on, Fern. Victoria and Brendan,

liking the quickstep. Brendan has made it complicated. How is she

looking? It is a fast-flowing dance. Lots of changes of rhythm. Lots of

variations in steps. There's lots of hopping steps where if you don't

get the rise and fall right, you could very well be at a different,

you could be like this, jumping up- and-down at different times. So

what I suggest is that they get the centre, she gets her centre up to

him and sticks to him like vil crow, then she will -- like velcro, then

she will feel his body. Let's talk about Denise and Ian. James has

hurt his ankle and you are training with her. Look at you and your

muscles! How is Denise doing? is doing all right. She is doing

quite well. Working very hard. Quite difficult choreography. But

what I would say is that she needs to shape her arms more and use her

arms, create more space under her arms. Don't do that, you have a

sweaty patch! LAUGHTER She needs to get these - that's wrong. She needs

to get these arms out on every step. But also clench these cheeks

together. Feel that! That feels all right. Really hard. She needs to

keep that really toned. That's lovely. Thanks for that. Ian Waite.

Excuse me! APPLAUSE We will discuss the boys later on. Thank you. One

of my favourite parts of the show is seeing all the re-enactments you

have sent in. We have had another one in from France. We had to show

APPLAUSE Please keep them coming in. APPLAUSE Please keep them coming in.

Send your clips to [email protected]. Clips should

be no longer than 30 seconds. Full instructions and terms and

conditions can be found at bbc.co.uk/ittakestwo.

In a moment, I will be joined by Louis and Flavia. First, a reminder

of how they blew up the dancefloor with their saucy Samba. You have to

be the King of pelvic gyrations. You have made it look very

masculine. I was disappointed. It was a bit safe. Every dance studio

in Britain will be congratulating you because there was so many

recognisable Samba steps. Yeah! Darcey still gave us a seven. She

still loved the performance. More sex next week for Darcey! Look left.

Please welcome the snake-hiped Olympian Louis and his gorgeous

partner, Flavia. APPLAUSE Lovely to have you here. Super sexy Samba on

Saturday. We loved it. But one of your lowest scores. Not that low,

by comparison, but how did you feel about that? It wasn't too bad. I

have taken quite well to ballroom, but Latin I find it quite hard to

get good scores. I think the scores we have got, or I think I was quite

happy with. I have to say lots of your fans were furious that what

they said was low marking. Hannah said, "I loved it. What more can he

do to get a high mark?" And, "Undermarked, his solo section was

fabulous." That is what the fans think. No secret Darcey has loved

you from the beginning. Were you shocked? She said she was

disappointed? Darcey! Naughty Darcey! I prepare myself for

negative comments. We are not dancers and we are picking up a new

profession. I prepare myself for criticism. Come on, Darcey! Samba

is a tricky one. It is quite hard for the celeb boys. It's always

going to be hard to get high scores on a dance like that. Having said

that, when Karen Hardy was here yesterday, she did point out

several of the moves that Louis did and she said they were spot on.

did fab. Well done. APPLAUSE Did it help - no, we have noticed you are

a bit shy. You are coming out of your shell. Flavia is coaxing you

out, check this out! Slowly. Look at you. Showing off your guns. Nice.

Favourite bit still to come. They are huge! Wait for it. Wait for it.

We are going to get the finger point. Here it comes. I love that.

It makes me laugh. Can we put that in the routines? No. Did that help

you get in the mood? A little bit. It is nice to do different things

and try and get out your shell before the show. Flavia has been

doing quite a good thing with you, she has been encouraging you to

take on the persona of some of the male pro celebrity dancers. This is

good. Yes. Do an impression of what a Latin dancer looks like.

right. Hello, baby. Don't... like my cha-cha, do you? Can you

pick anyone but Anton? No, that is Robin. LAUGHTER No, don't do that.

Victoria, I... Right, Brendan. LAUGHTER Who am I? Vincent does

that. Do I look good? Oh! Your Robin is priceless! This week, you

are back in the ballroom. You are doing a waltz. How is it going?

is going really well. After the Samba, it is nice to go back to

something calming. We have a nice song and, yeah, we are working hard.

Do you find Louis is more willing when he is doing ballroom? He is

more comfortable because it takes less, you have to be less

flamboyant so in a training studio it is quite hard at 10.00am to be

flamboyant and go for it. With the waltz it is more his natural kind

of feel and mood. It suits him a bit more. Your Mum has been down to

the training room. How is it when your Mum pops in? I love my Mum. I

wish she would just stay away. love it. She is on my side! When

she comes in, what does she do? brings food. Then she starts

interfering. No, she is helping! Stay away... Come again! Do you get

embarrassed having to dance in front of your Mum? She was telling

me what she thinks I should be doing. That is Flavia's job. I want

the support. That is hysterical. Your Strictly Dad left this weekend,

Colin, and he said that you were his hot tip to win. Thank you,

Colin. Good luck this weekend with your waltz. Give my love to Elaine.

Louis and Flavia! APPLAUSE In a moment, I will be chatting to

Denise and James. Here is a reminder of how they found

themselves back on top after a rather romantic Viennese waltz.

More turns than a Catherine wheel. Absolutely spectacular! Seamless!

One word - a-ma-zing. Yeah! She is a ballroom girl! We got three nines.

Yeah! The judges gave amazing comments but I still want more.

There were a couple of moments where I was disappointed with you.

All right. Thank you. He is so naughty. Our meerkat prediction

came right, top of the leaderboard. Denise and James, well done.

APPLAUSE Thank you. It was so beautiful to watch on Saturday. Did

you enjoy it? I loved it. It was the first week I felt more relaxed,

really enjoyed the dance. It was great. All on an injured ankle?

Were you worried you weren't going to be able to perform? No, I knew I

would be able to get through it. I was concerned whether I would make

it a lot worse, which I did. It was worth it. It was. Three nines,

totally worth it. And after the comments you had... Do you...

looks great. I am very proud. Dress rehearsal was a nightmare. Isn't

that better, get it wrong? really. It doesn't give you the

confidence before you go on to the live show. It panics me. You were

quite nervous about it. A fleckerl in there and I know for a fact they

are really hard to do. She did. She kept her feet flat on the floor as

well. Good teacher. He is. That is true(!) He is going to swell now!

Viennese waltz makes you a little bit dizzy and we did notice that

you did lose your bearings last week? Stay on your right leg. Turn.

And get on to your left leg. # I've been driving in my car.

# Hrbl Which way you turning? Please say left. --

# I've been driving in my car. # Which way you turning? Please say

left. To the right, to the right. That is turning right. That is

turning left. There you go. It is not rocket science. Yes! Well done.

APPLAUSE I get confused. We have made these for you. Thank you. I do

get confused with my left and right. You know what is good? It shows

that - I put a lot of spins in the routine. She doesn't find it

natural to spin. But when she gets it, she spins well. They are quite

special. Come on! Word! Paso doble this week. Do you like it? I love

it. We haven't had a chance to dance it properly because of his

injured ankle. Update us. How is your leg? How is Ian Waite in the

training room? Ian has been brilliant. Obviously, I have tried

to choreograph the routine from a chair. Have you got a stick? I feel

sorry for him. I haven't given him full control over Denise because my

aim is to dance on Saturday night. It is very, very painful. Ian

wasn't able to come in today so I tried to dance with you, but I was

in a lot of pain. I have had to make the routine easier for me,

where normally you are saying can you make it easier and I'm saying

no. At this stage in the game, what are the chances of you dancing on

Saturday? I will dance on Saturday. OK. Ian's devastated. Now, you have

had a fab-u-lous from Craig, you have had an a-ma-zing from Craig.

What will you get for your paso doble? Shocking! At this

moment...it will be shocking. has been the hardest week. I'm a

bit nervous this week. I need to be able to dance it with Denise. At

the end of the day, she will be dancing with me. How difficult is

it for you having two men in the... It's been lovely! Has it? Every

girl's dream to double up! LAUGHTER It's been really nice. Because Ian

is so lovely, he's been really helpful. Oh my Lord! It is

difficult. You do get used to dancing with your partner. He is

much more handsome than James! Don't set them off against each

other. Give me your paso face. Oh good. It is not a pout! I don't

know if I'm meant to be the bull. Are you the cape or the bull?

don't know. What is she? Bull! LAUGHTER Like a bull in a china

shop. Good luck on Saturday. Thank you. APPLAUSE It is time now to

focus on the boys. In the second instalment of Ian Waite's Wednesday

Warm Up. Ian Waite is back. Did you hear

that? You might not get to dance it on Saturday. Let's hope it gets

better, James(!) We are down to four male celebrities. Do you think

that the females, the ladies, are stronger this year? I thought that

in the Launch Show. I thought we have a really strong bunch of

ladies here. It goes to show that these boys need to up their game.

Yes. Shape up or ship out. Erin and Richard. They were in the bottom

two. Saved in a glorious comeback. Can they avoid it with their

Charleston? I think this will suit Richard's personality. It is cheeky.

It is fun. I have slowed this down. They are dancing some, a lot of

side by side actions. Here they are dancing it together. Just watch

this next bit with the knee coming up. Is that not supposed to happen?

No. It will be a bit of a disaster. They will sharpen it up! Michael

and Natalie are doing a salsa this week. He has had two strong weeks

in ballroom. Can he turn it around with his Latin? It is a shame. He

has all the attributes, he is moving his hips, he's got some

great armography. His posture is good. I want to highlight this area,

good. I want to highlight this area, really. That is a good look! He is

so handsome. That is unfortunate. He looks like the Tin Man. He needs

to have more expression, especially with something like the salsa. You

have to get into it with your face and with your whole body. Show us.

What is his face supposed to be like?

AUDIENCE: Oh yes! It makes me laugh. Good luck, Michael. They always get

comments, do they, Nicky and Karen about their dance content. They are

doing the foxtrot. How is the content? There's lots of foxtrot in

here. She's worked him very hard. My main concern about Nicky, and it

has been every week, is his posture. Certain parts of it have improved.

He has tucked his bottom under. When he is taking a step, any step,

he tends to sort of dip when he - he needs to make sure that he

pushes off the back foot and the backside and pushes through so that

he creates some more distance in the steps. A bit of movement.

push with the top half, he lets his elbows go behind his back. Where

should they be? Up and forward to create more space. So she can

create this vase effect. Louis and Flavia and their waltz. Can Louis

wow in the waltz? Some parts of this are brilliant. That promenade

there and it is a waltz, it is a great dance to do. I'm sure it will

be very emotive. What I have pointed out here is there's a few

points here, if I point them out? One there. You have two here which

is the arm. And three there. OK. 25 seconds to tell me... When we are

pivoting, keep the bottom in, one. Two, he needs to keep his right

elbow forward and up. OK. Three, he needs to keep his head left. That

is good. Keep going round. This is beautiful. I could stay like this

all night. Good luck, Louis. Thank you very much, Ian. That is it for

today. Thanks to all my guests. Join me at 6.30pm tomorrow. I'll be