Episode 25 Strictly - It Takes Two

Hello and welcome to Friday's It Takes Two. We have so many stars on

the show tonight we have gone positively supernova. Nicky and

Karen are here. APPLAUSE Later on, we will sneak into the studio next

door and have a look at Dani and Vincent's tango and have a chat

with them. Our Friday Panel - well, what can I say? Three glorious

folks. We have Pop Prince, Conor Maynard. APPLAUSE From West End to

Walford, John Partridge is here. APPLAUSE And perhaps my favourite

Dame of all time - she should be one - Su Pollard! APPLAUSE My life

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

welcome your host, Zoe Ball. APPLAUSE The shoes are quite high!

Hello and welcome to It Takes Two. Just 23 hours 57 minutes and 58

seconds to go until the live show tomorrow. Our live instalments of

dancefloor classics - Nicky and Karen will be tackling a foxtrot. I

have no words on camera one! I will use this one here! It is live telly,

everybody! APPLAUSE I will be chatting to them in a moment. Here

is how they rated with the rumba. I think that started quite well(!)

actually felt he had a lot of chemistry. He was playing the girl.

He was playing it too much! He was like Usain Bolt. The ice skating

lift where you held her and that went on and on, that was great

control. For me, it was a series of presentations, not enough basic

rumba in there. What did Craig give us? Four. It is about a journey. It

is about working hard. I am giving it my all. Hopefully, I am

improving. Please welcome Nicky and Karen. APPLAUSE Hello, guys.

Welcome to the show. How much did you enjoy being the rumba love

adonis? It was fun. To be able to dance that slow and deliver, it

reminded - you are acting as best you can. I watched it back. I felt

good on the night. I watched it back and I thought I can't do it

any better than that. That was as good as I can deliver it. I have to

say that I loved it. We loved it. Darcey and Craig, they said there

wasn't enough basic. But take heart. When Karen Hardy was in this week -

and she is a judge - she said she thought your choreography was

fantastic and there was lots of rumba in there. What did you think

about this? I always take into consideration what the judges are

saying and I always respect their criticism. But sometimes I may

disagree with them. I thought the rumba had a bit of everything in it.

Thank you, Karen. Maybe I was named after Karen! LAUGHTER Maybe you

were. Sevens from all the judges and a four from Craig. Did that

hurt? It did. The sevens were great. When you look back. I think I was

being hard on myself. The four left a bitter taste in my mouth as if I

hadn't done it well. But when I look back and three sevens are

really good for a rumba. I'm still happy. Yes. And also we end on a

positive. Bruno did disagree and he said he thought you brought the

performance out there. That must have been encouraging? Darcey said,

"I want you to seduce Karen!" What more can I do?! Bruno said, "You

were like Usain Bolt!" Yes. Well, let's hope that tomorrow night the

judges are all on your side and I think that if your choreography,

Nicky's own choreography, pays off, you should win them over. Have a

look at this. Oh no. Do you want to dance like a star? Then try burning

up the dancefloor, the new dance DVD. Follow his simple step by step

guide. One, stop. Two, stop. Discover original choreography.

Heads, shoulders, knees and toes... And learn from the master. If you

make a mistake, you don't stop! wrong, you're right. You too will

be burning up the dancefloor. cool and he's slick. I was in awe.

Thank you for bringing me alive. Coming soon to a DVD store near you.

Maybe. LAUGHTER It could happen. I'm going to buy it! Back into the

ballroom this week and you have the foxtrot. How has it been going?

It's been going well. Very good. You are in hold, you are in frame

for most of it. If you do go wrong, Karen can pinch your shoulder to

get the frame up. And it's slow. The foxtrot is a bit tricky. When

it goes in, and it went in on Wednesday, it is in a good place.

We have a little prop. Tell me about that. Mic stand? Yes, it's

taken the Freddie Mercury mic, the half stand. Is it wise to keep it

for the whole routine? They wanted content and something in there. So

we have put something else in! have a great track as well. Bit of

Buble. Come on! # The best is yet to come. #

Is the best yet to come? Yes. The best is yet to come. I'm trying.

I'm working hard. That is all you can do. Hopefully, I can stay in.

Thanks to everybody for voting for me. I know. They want to see more

of you dancing. You have a little friend coming in tomorrow. Shane's

coming? He is. Shane and his wife are coming in. So pop royalty will

be in the room. Does that make you a bit nervous to have one of the

boys in? Of course. Shane has always classed himself as a better

dancer than me. He will be going, "You didn't nail that bit." Harry

from McFly tipped you as his top to win last week. He said you are his

number one? Did sne That is a nice thing. I'm very happy with that.

Good luck with your foxtrot and with the prop. Nicky and Karen?

APPLAUSE Now, last week, Our Lady meerkat friend was bang on with her

prediction that Denise and James would be top of the leaderboard.

Encouraged by her success, Fleur, a Brazilian aardvark, wants in on the

Look at that, you two! He knows what he's talking about. Are you

familiar with them? Can you trust them? I think you can now and I

think they will buy our DVD as well! Let's hope Fleur is right.

Good luck tomorrow. Nicky and Karen. APPLAUSE In a moment, my Friday

Panel will be here including, yes, watch out Nicky, Conor Maynard.

Here he is in action. # Don't turn around

# Floating so high # Turn around

# Together nothing can stop us now. # Turn around

# Together nothing can stop us now. Here we go... Hi-de-hi, campers. It

is time for our Friday Panel! I can only apologise. Please welcome a

dream line-up, Conor Maynard, John Partridge and Su Pollard. APPLAUSE

Welcome, welcome. What a glorious threesome. Congratulations to you,

Conor. We have been discussing how young you are. You are 19? I am.

could be your Mum? You could be. You were four when Westlife

started? Yes. Welcome. Thank you very much. Your third top ten hit.

Are you living the dream? It has been amazing so far. That is why I

can relate to the celebrities in this show. I was kind of - I'm an

amateur in the music industry and I was thrust into this - you saw a

big fancy music video there, one of the coolest artists in the world

and I'm like next to him doing yeah! Bless you. I pulled through

and did it. You are learning all the time? Definitely. John,

Christian is saying goodbye to Walford next week. Is he leaving in

a taxi or in a coffin? Neither of those. Hankys at the ready! It must

be emotional to say goodbye? It was. Five years of my life. I absolutely

loved it. New things. New things. Move on. That's what we do. Su

Pollard is here. APPLAUSE Thank you. So excited. You are no stranger to

Strictly. You did the Christmas Special last year. My feet are

still killing me! My toes were pinched in a size five! I'm a six-

and-a-half! I know. You do watch with your Mum, the show? Yes, she

will say, this is Hilda... Are you listening, Hilda? She is 90. She

will say, "This is my favourite part of the day, I've got the

chocolates." She will say, "Oh, haven't they done well? They have

so improved. I would never know who to choose." She chooses everyone!

We love Hilda. Let's look at all our couples and see who her

favourite would be. Michael and Natalie are doing the salsa to the

jackion Five. Love this. I Want You Back. He has been one of the major

surprises, made great improvements. Salsa is all about timing. His

timing looks like it has improved. He looks like he wants a wee! I

will put that aside. Maybe he does! LAUGHTER He has not had a lot of

luck with his Latin so far, could this be the moment that it changes?

It could be. Maybe when he is wanting to catch the ball, or do

the bat, he is preparing - have you seen him - he is preparing. He's

loosening up now. He is smiling a lot more. I think that is what it

is about. It is confidence. Exactly. Look at you two! Denise and James,

or Denise and Ian at the moment. The latest is James' foot is still

very bruised. They will make a decision about whether he dances

tomorrow. Controversial. Doing a paso doble. How difficult will it

be to swap partners? If she is being led by the gentleman, it

shouldn't matter who she dances with. She will cope with it

amazingly. She's used to it. they are dancing to White Stripes,

Seven Nation Army. Is this going to work? Da-da-da... He is going to go

somewhere, this chap! No, I think that's an amazing song to dance to.

You create a connection with the person you are dancing with. If you

have to change, it will be an adjustment. She is top of the table,

right? Yes. She will be fine. will do it. Victoria and Brendan

are doing the quickstep. Second from the bottom last week. Do you

think, looking at this, that she can turn it around and get higher

up the leaderboard? Once again, she's out of her comfort zone

bodily and physically. There is all that cycling. And she has to turn

it around. No, you can see - look at that line there. Good line.

know how hard that is. Anton would be so proud of you! He wasn't at

the time! LAUGHTER He kept saying, "Stick your bum in!" Pelvis

forward! Pedal, pedal. Frank Sinatra they have? Come on!

parents would love that one. Probably your grandparents! Exactly.

I think that helps you when you have an amazing song. It makes it

easier. And it can inspire them. Lisa and Robin are doing the

foxtrot. Now they are dancing to Natalie Cole.

# This will be. # We love this. She's been told to

concentrate on her footwork? has said this? Name names. Len.

not looking at her feet. I couldn't care less what her feet are doing.

I absolutely love her! She brings great energy? I think Len, in his

own way, because he is Head Judge, and not just because of that, he

can see she's got such potential, I think if she goes the extra mile,

she can do it technically brilliantly, too. I think he is

saying that to help her. I think she is doing it. I love her. That

sounds great. Louis and Flavia are doing the Viennese waltz to Andy

Williams Moon River. He is dead! is. Bless him. A few weeks ago.

Louis found himself in the middle of the table last week. Can this

see him return to the top? Right now, he looks like a floating

butterfly. You are going to be friends, I think! He looked very

focus. Excellent. He is a bit of a Strictly heart-throb, do the

muscles do it for you? Absolutely. Several people on my street agree

with me! LAUGHTER Name names? up my street! Get them out! I sound

so common! Richard and Erin are doing the Charleston this week.

They are dancing to Paolo Ntini. What do you think? How can you not

love him? He is giving a good shot! He is having a good go. That is

what we like. Absolutely. No. are not thinking this is going to

be a winner? No. That's awful, isn't it? Only because, you know

what it is like, you are bouncy and he is very, the way he is, I guess

people automatically and himself included think... The way he is?

What does that mean? With all this... He is camp! LAUGHTER He's

got lifts for the first time. Should Erin be nervous? I feel like

he looks like he was enjoying himself so much, I think if he did

drop her, he would carry on! I love him! Fern and Artem are doing the

salsa. They are dancing to Gloria Estefan! Look at those legs!

Fabulous. I hope she is wearing something like that. I hope so, too.

You are only nine! John, she's been criticised for not giving enough.

What do you think? I think sometimes less is more. We don't

want to all be like this. Exactly. We wouldn't know what she was

talking about! Sometimes it is. Sometimes less is more. She is

thinking about technique and style. She is very graceful. I don't think

she needs to oversell. Lovely legs as well. Kimberley and Pasha doing

the Viennese waltz. They are dancing to Christina Perri from

Twilight. Do you like Girls Aloud? They are just wonderful. Do you

have a favourite? The way her hair flows and... LAUGHTER She is a

wonderful person, really. I want to take you home with me. How do you

think, what do you think of Kimberley? Very good! VERY! Amazing.

Wonderful! Where is she?! She is great. Lock yourself in your

dressing room! She is great. Dani and Vincent? We love them. They are

doing a tango. We will talk to them in a minute. Do you think they

could be top of the leaderboard? She is a dark horse. He's the tango

king. They will come with a killer routine and they are going to kill

it. She is the one to watch. From what you have seen so far, I

want a name from each of you, who do you think will lift the

Glitterball Trophy? Kimberley. John? Louis. Denise! You have been

marvellous. Thank you so much. APPLAUSE Please stay. Thank you so

much. Great panel! Thank you so much. So, it's been an intense six

weeks of competition for our celebrities. Here are the highs and

the lows that they have all experienced over the last couple of

weeks. The toughest moment for me so far

has been week two when we did cha- cha. I felt a little bit like this

isn't the real uphill struggle. toughest moment of Strictly so far

was standing, waiting for the Samba to start. Definitely the toughest.

Hallowe'en week, the start of our Charleston where I had a full dance

all by myself. That was nerve- wracking. The dance-off. The

dreaded dance-off. Dancing the cha- cha. It is so technical that I did

really struggle. Toughest moment of Strictly so far is recovering from

forgetting my entire routine on the dancefloor in the front of ten

million people! Being really, really ill and having to perform on

the Saturday. There have been some tough moments to get this far. My

own lack of thinking that I can remember anything, do anything.

Messing up the foxtrot on week two. I felt like I really let Pasha down.

That first elimination because I had no idea what to expect. Thank

goodness I had Vincent there to calm me down. The best moment for

me without a shadow of a doubt was at the end of our cha-cha when I

caught Robin in my arms! I'm dead proud of that. Throwing Erin to the

floor after spinning her around and giving it that! Our salsa on

Saturday. I kind of let all my inhibitions go for that minute-and-

a-half. Every single dance I have given it everything. Six weeks' ago,

I would have never thought that I would get this far. I was

particularly proud of myself for managing to turn twice all by

myself in the tango. The best moment so far has to be the Dirty

Dancing, nailing that lift at the end. Got to be the jive. I would

happily do it every week. favourite dance move was in the

jive and it's called the Lindy! It was like I was skipping again!

Standing up straight and falling back on to Artem's shoulder!

moment when we finished The Mask and Karen dropped and I looked into

the camera and I went, "Smoking!" So it's Friday, which means that

all of our couples get the chance to walk through their routines for

the first time on the proper Strictly floor. As you have been so

good this week, we are going to give you a look at Dani and

APPLAUSE Dani and Vincent, come over for a chat. How good did that

look? Very, very good indeed. Hello, darlings. Hey! The Fonz is back! I

want to talk about the tango in a minute. Let's talk about the jive.

Congratulations, your highest score yet with 33. Were you loving it?

absolutely loved the jive. It was so much fun. Knackering, but loads

of fun! It did look a bit tiring. You have such great energy. Of

course, a nine from Len. Yes! did that feel? Amazing. If he could

do that every week, that would be great. Looking at that tango, this

week could be. Vincent, we did dig the wig! Second wig for you. Are we

going to get one every other week? I'm planning to. I'm pushing myself

through the wig situation! Yes, they suit me. They do. I make the

wigs look better! You do. Did you enjoy playing the Fonz? I did. I am

the Fonz. Everybody goes hey! a shame Henry Winkler is not here!

Craig saw more of you than expected? I know. I did flash him a

bit and I'm so sorry, it won't happen again, hopefully. Big pants!

Now, the tango, after a cha-cha and a jive, is that quite difficult to

change your head space? No, because I have this amazing man, who is

like the King of the Tango! I'm talking about you. It is quite easy.

As much as I love the jive, I really like the tango. It is my

favourite. They are having a few difficulties in the training room

this week. The main issue being to pause or to pose. Have a look at

this. This one is a pose. A pause? A pose. Pause? Are you saying pose?

Are you saying pause or pose? Pose. Like pose. Pause then? Pose.

A pose would be like. What is the other one? A pause is when you

like... Sounds the same. You mean pause? Pause. Pause. Yes. What is

the other one? Pose. A pose. Where you hold. OK, yes. Are you taking

advantage of me because I can't speak England very best?! LAUGHTER

I still don't know the difference. I love it. A pose. A pose. The Fonz.

A pause. Vincent, you are priceless! Sorry. The tango is one

of Vincent's favourite dances. Does that add pressure to you? There's

not so much pressure on me. There is more pressure on you because you

are the God of the Tango. Nobody is expecting anything from me. That is

good. You can go ta-da, look at me! That is the plan. Nice to see these.

What are these called? Magic ruby slippers. He's got it right! Now,

Dani can cope with everything you throw at her. Are you taking the

choreography to another level this week? I am. Strangely enough, she's,

well so far she is the most improved dancer in my opinion,

improved celebrity. I have been trying to do more difficult things

thinking that she wasn't able to do it, but she can. It is amazing. I

have the freedom to do whatever I want. Does that scare you? Yes! A

little bit. You can do it. He wouldn't give you anything if he

couldn't do it. It is nice to know he has faith in me. It is good. You

have a dramatic fight scene, I have heard as well? Tell me more. Yes.

It is to get Dani into the mood more. I was trying to make up like

a mystery dancer just make her jealous, so she was laughing when I

said a name. I said, "We will try Rachel Stevens" and that got her.

That got me. The thing is, Rachel Stevens got 39 out of 40. Yes.

Can you match that? I have no idea. Depends on what mood the judges are

in. Maybe if I send them some flowers beforehand! Yes. That might

work. Have faith, girl. I will try. You wanted to say happy birthday to

somebody? Happy birthday Georgia. Happy birthday, Georgia. Listen,

good luck tomorrow. I hope it all goes well. You have a skirt to the

knee so no flashing tomorrow? Hopefully not. Are you wearing the

slippers tomorrow? I will wear them. Enjoy your tango. Thank you so much.

Thank you. APPLAUSE Thank you very much to all my guests today. The

big show tomorrow is 6.30pm on BBC One - Strictly Come Dancing: It