Episode 26 Strictly - It Takes Two

Hello and welcome to Monday's It Takes Two. What a show it was this

weekend! This lady was one sexy salsa mama, which makes it hard to

say goodbye today, Fern and Artem are here. Don't leave us! APPLAUSE

I did have a tear last night. They have waltzed their way to Wembley.

Louis and Flavia are here. APPLAUSE And a man who is on the naughty

step for some of his scoring on Saturday night. You may well polish

that paddle! Craig Revel Horwood is here. BOOING Nice to see you have

made an effort tonight. This is It Live from Television Centre. This

is Strictly: It Takes Two. Please welcome your host, Zoe Ball.

APPLAUSE Hello and welcome to Monday's It Takes Two. It was the

weekend before Wembley and the stakes were higher than ever. In

case you missed it, here are the Strictly headlines:

Good evening. Here are the news - here are the news? Here is the

news!. James Jordan proved not a wild bull could stop his paso as he

scored the highest marks of the series so far. I thought it was

fantastic. Out of this world! say! Louis and Flavia's waltz

sparked off a ballroom battle between the judges as Craig stood

his ground. I didn't like that turn at the top. It was very pedestrian.

It was not! I am trying to find some positives here. You have said

so much nonsense! It was a little bit... No... What a load of

bolognese! I thought it was lovely. Well done. I say. And finally it

was a tale of two trips as Brendan and Robin fell foul to the stairs.

Lisa and Robin, off you go. LAUGHTER That gets me every time.

Those were the Strictly headlines. I love that. Bless, Robin. He was

embarrassed. For more gossip, take a look at our exclusive footage

from behind-the-scenes. The weather's not too good. But I'm

sure that the dancing is going to be fabulous! There he is! This is

our foxtrot competition for the day. Get in there and get a Sousse case

because you better get packing! LAUGHTER -- Get a suitcase because

you better get packing! LAUGHTER are doing the tango and everybody

knows it takes two to tango. Wembley next week. Yes, Wembley

will be massive. No pressure. Wembley is a big deal. We have

worked hard on this. It is a good routine. I have had the time of my

life. Not ready to go home yet.Ly Give it plenty. The hip also be

flying towards the crowd. I don't think in Tennessee re-s I have ever

been so petrified taking the floor and being flipped by my partner. I

need a crash helmet for this dance! I do! -- in ten series I have ever

been so petrified taking the floor and being flipped by my partner. I

need a crash helmet for this dance! I do! You gave it some! Brilliant.

Is that for It Takes Two? Lovely! This is where the REAL magic

happens. This is where the weaves get done! Once you get the make-up

on and the hair, I get in paso mode! Keep your head still. Sorry.

I can't stop growling. I am like a milk bottle. We don't have natural

skin like you. You have dyed your beard. I look forward to this bit.

I love make-up. So, yeah, I enjoy sitting here. Trying to learn some

tricks. The Strictly Saturdays are pretty manic. It is hair, make-up,

physio, tech run, band call. You do not stop. I'm the new girl, the new

ironing girl. That is how we do it. Hey, baby! Take over. Five minutes,

everybody. It's all final touch-ups. This is the last bit before we are

ready to go on. It is quite exciting. Everyone is running about.

At this time, everyone's quite silent because everyone's too

nervous to talk so we all just focus on the dance steps. Ready!

Grrr! Let's hear it for the girls! Yeah! The pressure is completely on

every single couple. We want the people going through to Wembley

that are amazing. We don't want any dross at Wembley, darling. There is

no space for it. You have to say goodbye to Fern and Artem. Fern is

fantastic. It is a shock to us all, I think. I will miss her so much.

She is the nicest lady ever. I'm devastated. Please give a warm

welcome to the latest eliminated couple, Fern and Artem. APPLAUSE

The thing is, your salsa was super- sexy. It was fantastic. Everybody

loved it. If you are going to go out on a dance, what a great one?

It was fantastic. I really enjoyed it. I loved doing that dance. Yeah,

I was really happy to do it again. LAUGHTER I will do it again, if you

like. How frustrating is it for you to have seen Fern progress so far,

get her best scores, best dance, and then to go home? It is a

bummer! That is one way of putting it! Bless you. Were you

disappointed? Well, it was the best dance, the highest score we ever

got. We were on the way up. We were having a good time. That was good

fun. How much has she achieved? How much has she impressed you?

much, I would imagine! You have. course you have! Don't be silly.

Looking back into the week one, where we did cha-cha, which was a

simple dance, and come that far to the salsa and be completely

different person on the dancefloor, because I think this was the first

dance... I am that person, you didn't know it was me. Exactly.

Yeah. Of course I know it was you. That is why I am saying it. I feel

like I shouldn't be here! You have some amazing messages from people.

They have all loved you. "Was so heartbroken to key my favourite

couple go out. Keep up your dancing." "Saturdays won't be the

same without you." Here are your best bits. Your partner is Artem!

am very fond of him already. I do have a soft spot for Fern. She is

such a sweet person. Don't be nervous. It will be fine. He gives

me a kiss and you think, "Oh." That's it. You wafted your skirt a

lot. I didn't mind the wafting! am surprised skirt-wafting caused

such a controversy. Happy? Yes. am, too. We are dancing the waltz

and it is a romantic dance. Please listen to my counts. Training

however has not been romantic. the beginning. From the top.

sun beams when he smiles. When it doesn't, he is like a Russian

cloud! You give us such a beautiful feeling when you dance. The flow

was fantastic! He is smiling. The Charleston is hard and fast. When

she does what needs to be done, it looks great. Good. Much better. The

best thing about Fern, when she performed she really performed.

seems to be quite pleased. Prim, proper and extremely nice. You can

be Mary Poppins any day! It is lovely to do it properly. This week

is American Smooth. Artem is drilling me on a lot of steps.

Quick, quick, slow. Good! With a bit of luck, I shall get them right.

We are doing OK. You have got the how, but it hasn't got the wow!

didn't have the impact it should have had. Oh, it was a nightmare.

Artem's invested so much faith and hope and trust in me. I would hate

to disappoint him. She is trying her hardest and she really wants to

get it right. I liked what you did with your skirt. I thought there

was a fire, Fern. Did I do the steps coming down better? Yes.

That's good! I think salsa will suit Fern. Very nice. I am so happy.

That was it. I can do it! This was your best dance so far. Well done!

Getting that booty going, you are a great-looking woman! Kimberley and

Pasha. Kimberley and Pasha. Kimberley and Pasha. I think we

know each other pretty well. I am so proud to count him as a friend.

I would like you to stay as a friend. Thank you so much for being

my partner. You made me a better person. Thank you for that. Artem,

I know... That's a beautiful thing to say. Artem, you had something to

say to Fern? Yes, I do. Oh my goodness! This is for you. Oh! Look

at that. Bless! I'm on the verge of menopause here! 13? Lucky number!

It is a crazy Russian thing! Who would you like to see go on to win?

I'm not going to tell you. They are all fabulous and they should all

win. And that's true. And there's somebody that I would like to win.

I'm not going to say. Tell me later. I won't tell anybody. It's been

wonderful having you on the show. have loved every second. Have I

made you a better person? Yes. and Artem! APPLAUSE Right. Can I

say one thing? Phil, I am coming home and thank you for looking

after everybody. I am coming home. Let's hear it for Phil! APPLAUSE

Stop it. Craig Revel Horwood will be here to cheer us all up and chat

about the weekend wonders. First, here is a Craig brain-teaser for

you Strictly buffs out there Hello you Strictly experts. I am

here to test your Strictly knowledge. Craig appears in the

Urban Dictionary. Is it Strictly true or Strictly baloney? I have

gathered - time now to rake over the weekend performances with a

judge who knows all about nit- picking, Craig Revel Horwood.

APPLAUSE # Bad to the bone. #

Oh! Yes! APPLAUSE Head-banging! You are looking very handsome today.

Just for you, my darling. You are going to some awards? I am! Seven

of the couples at the weekend scored their highest marks yet. Is

this an indication they are all on the up? Yes, it does. Really,

really good dancing. It is so wonderful to see. It is. Yeah. I am

having trouble sort of... Getting high scores out? I'm having trouble

finding things wrong. Let's talk about Kimberley and Pasha. A bit of

a shocker, those two being in the bottom two? I know. She is a

fantastic dancer. They work brilliantly together. She's just

fantastic. This wasn't particularly brilliant, this section. What was

wrong with it? She was hopping through it. If you don't find your

centre, if you don't pull up through your centre, you are going

to have to hop. But it wasn't a bottom two? No. That proves how

much power the audience have. scary. It is. They can, like they

did with people like Ann Widdecombe, keep putting them through. Then we

don't have any of that this year, which is good. I am really,

honestly, enjoying all the dancing. Michael and Natalie. Latin has

never been Michael's strong point. This was much better? Yes. Apart

from this bit? It is still not his strong point. He does do all the

steps. That is fascinating. When he comes on to the floor to do these

dances, I do find it fascinating because I would love to get the

secret to how you do the steps but they don't look right. It is an

oddity. When people dance off... he was on it and he was doing

everything that Natalie had taught him. You can see every mechanic,

behind it. It is very robotic. And that's the problem with all of that.

He needs to move through the music better. I loved his performance.

Richard. This was fun? I was loving it. I was loving it. He has my

shoes on, too! He has. Ten points, there, darling. He could put his

own personality into it. I think that makes the difference. If you

enjoy a dance, you are going to perform it so much better. And,

clearly, he did a great job. said his best dance yet? Nicky and

Karen and the foxtrot. When I was watching this, I had the anxious

thing of, "Please let this go well" and by the end I was leaping on the

sofa? I am the same. It was a very exciting opening. That is going

well. And then I thought once they get in hold, it will go wrong. It

didn't. And I was delighted. I am there judging and I am willing and

wishing them all to do brilliantly. All of them? Yes. All of them.

favourites? No favourites. I do have favourites, of course I do! I

don't judge favouritism. I don't believe in that. I have to judge on

what I see on that evening. OK. We will discuss the rest of them and

that six shocker later on. Craig Revel Horwood for now. APPLAUSE In

just a moment, I will be chatting to Louis and Flavia. But first,

here is a recap of how they waltzed their way into our hearts on

Saturday. I didn't like that turn at the top. It was very pedestrian.

You were getting out of time in the middle of it. Do not listen to him.

That start, with that turn, so controlled. You handled that well.

Your top was great. It had more polish than Number Ten's front

door! You waltzed your way into the hearts of the nation. I don't know

what to say. I wasn't sure which way it was going to go. I thought

the lower Craig's score was going to be. Well done. You did a fab job.

Well done. Please welcome Louis and Flavia. APPLAUSE Oh you are going

to Wembley! Here we go, here we go! You must be thrilled? I am. It was

a tough week. It is always a tough week. We made it. Is it getting any

easier? Definitely not. Doesn't make sense for it to get easier. It

gets harder. It showed that by last weekend. They will give you two

dances in a couple of weeks. You did this waltz and then there was

this cat fight between the judges. How was it for you out on the

floor? I had a brilliant time. Just like how it said, the waltz, we

have waltzed through the routine. It was refreshing. It was a

romantic dance. You hadn't heard of Ricky Martin when you danced the

Samba and you hadn't heard of Andy Williams and Moon River. Does it

make it tricky when you don't know the song? It does. I want a song I

can get into. For example? tango was good. What would you like

to dance to? Some... Go on. Some Motown stuff, looking forward to

the Charleston. So let's have a look. We will talk about the

squabble between the judges. Flavia, what did you make of that? I got a

bit hot towards the end. I have never seen Len and Bruno quite so

heated. It is good. It is - everyone has their opinion. It was

great to have the three nines. We thought we were going to leave and

let them get on with it. That might have been a good idea. Your fans

were outraged. Loads of messages. "Craig's negativity towards Louis

each week is a disgrace." Karren said, "They were brilliant, so

floaty and romantic. Loved it." That is good. As he is here, shall

we get him in? Come on in. No! would be delighted to discuss it.

feel like Judge J udy! Craig, having watched it back, do you

think you were harsh? I have watched it back. I suppose I am

being picky. All the points I mentioned are true. When - I want

you to dance brilliantly. I'm saying that face to face man-to-man,

darling. But I want it to be fantastic. I would love to see you

getting tens. You won't ever get tens if you don't fix the little

things that Flavia has been telling you about. Particularly the head

left, darling. Please, please, fix that. The thumb, how many times did

your mother say it? It wasn't too bad! I saw it. It was creeping up

and going down. It was semi there? You have to, when you do that turn,

go on to... What is that? Here, you go up and then off into your turn!

Very nice. Are you finished? No, I could go on! Also with your hands,

you tend to flick them out... should go! Have you got anything to

say back? No. Wait till next week! Goodbye. Thank you. APPLAUSE He

does go on! Do you think he should have given Louis a bit more credit?

I think so. There was a lot of rise and fall. His arms were great. His

posture was great. We wanted to keep it simple because that is the

song that we had. He glided across. He made it look effortless which is

half the battle. We all loved it. Who cares what he says! We are

quite surprised when the judges were having a go, you didn't spark

off. You can be a bit of a teenager in training! This is good. What?!

Go from the top. No. Bit more oomph! No. Leave me alone.

# I'm just a teenage dirt bag, baby. Don't do that! I can't do that!

Ready? No. Why can't we dance to Bob Marley! This is horrific.

that top! Tell me when you are ready? Thursday. I will dance with

Dani. She is better than you anyway! Oh dear. I want a day where

I finish at 4.00pm and that is it! Oh you need a spank! See what I put

up with? Very quickly, American Smooth this week. You are doing it

at Wembley, how is it going? right. Really? Oh come on! We are

doing lifts, my back is aching. is not happy. It will be great.

Good luck this weekend. Thank you. Louis and Flavia. APPLAUSE Now,

earlier on, we teased you with a fact about Craig Revel Horwood. Was

it true or Strictly baloney? asked you Craig appears in the

Urban Dictionary. I bet that got you thinking. It is Strictly true.

A Craig is someone who consistently marks or scores lower than those

around him. Why is Tonioli not in the Urban Dictionary?! Join me next

time for another Strictly True or Strictly Baloney with me, the one

and only, Bruno Tonioli. Just for you!

Time to talk about the rest of the weekend's dances, Craig Revel

Horwood is back again. APPLAUSE We have given him a clap! How does it

feel to be immortalised in the Urban Dictionary? We are loving

that. Dani and Vincent and the tango. You loved this dance is this

I did. She is a really exciting dancer. And also, a brilliant,

clean technician. By that, I mean she does everything really well. It

is focused and she is centred and she's a good actress. How will she

get to the top of the leaderboard? Just - I would say just with a bit

more dynamic. That is all she really needs to get the nines, the

tens. She needs the right dance, the right music and... Wembley

could be that. Lisa and Robin. You said impeccable timing from Lisa

this weekend. Always. Were you impressed at the speed? I love her.

I love the fact that she - it was a really quick dance. And I loved the

fact that she went into all the moves and she created those

wonderful long lines, which are quite difficult to do. Particularly

at that speed. I really enjoy watching her. I can't tell you how

much. I loved Robin's slip-up as well. I did, too and Brendan's was

a joy! I can't tell you. Victoria blanked him. I would, too! Denise

and James and the paso doble, which was amazing. Highest score so far?

Yeah. Why is it so good? It is when all the elements come together. The

dance, the song, the music, the dress, the action, the acting, it

is when it all comes together. And you are totally believing in the

story of it, you are believing she is a professional dancer. That is

what you have to do. Well done. Victoria and Brendan and the

quickstep. You said you enjoyed this, but you could see her

footwork transferring to her upper body? Yes. I meant when - because

the footwork is so quick and it can be lively, you can't let that

transfer to the top half of your body. You don't want to see the top

half of the body going up-and-down. Cool. You don't want that stuff

going on. You want to maintain a beautiful frame and not know how

the footwork is happening. OK. soon as you see the chugging stuff,

it's gone out the window. You said something about snout on Saturday,

you can't say that? Her snout was too far up in the air! Let's talk

more about Louis and Flavia. You giving him a six, which has not

gone down well? I know. Thank you for your wonderful tweets,

everyone(!) I just want him to be perfect. It is just unfortunate

that some of the points, the biggest points, like his head to

the left, like his thumb, weren't in place. If all of that had come

together and he had remembered every bit of it, that then, I would

say would have been a nine. But I was feeling a bit mean. You were!

was quite shocked at the other judges giving nines to be frank. I

thought my six won't be so bad if there are eights. They showed you

up? They did. Are you looking forward to the spectacle of

Wembley? I cannot wait. There is a huge surprise in store. Is it you?

Are you flying again? I might be, darling. It is Craig. Thank you.

That is all we have time for today. Huge thank you to all of my guests.