Episode 34 Strictly - It Takes Two

Hello and welcome to It Takes Two. Tonight, the final preparations for

a weekend of sea, sand and sequins - we'll have all the latest from the

training rooms. Plus... Back on top form and ready to 'rock' it in

Blackpool, Natalie and Artem are here. Their Argentine Tango was the

stuff of Sweet Dreams. Sophie and Brendan are with us. And their

beautiful Waltz saw a clean sweep of nines from the judges. Can they top

it this weekend? It's Susanna and Kevin. This is Strictly It Takes

Two. Live from London, this is Strictly, It Takes Two. Please,

welcome your host, Zoe Ball! Hello! Good even, welcome to Strictly, It

Takes Two. It is Thursday and Blackpool's ballroom beckons.

Exciting! So, which of the couples with tower over the others? It is

time to head to the training room to find out the latest.

I am doing the American Smooth. I lost it, sorry. The American Smooth

is fast. Move! I think I will trip over your feet. Ben has to lock the

steps in. He must believe in himself. My belief is bigger than

his doubt. I know it will be great. I have to work on my posture, head,

my backside! That's it, keep it up. Very good! Yes! I really want to get

it right. Hold me where you held me... If I lead her instead of her

leading me, I would be really happy! We are dancing the Quickstep,

another fun, quick dance! There is a lot of content. A lot of steps, a

lot of technique that is difficult. I think that will be the most

difficult thing. The biggest challenge is keeping the posture

whilst moving your feet. She has to maintain the stillness in the frame

and the posture in order to make the Quickstep look good. I am looking

forward to put the steps together in the minute-and-a-half to make the

best possible Quickstep we can do. I can't wait to dance it in

Blackpool. We are dancing a Charleston. A

fabulous show dance. The first week we do lifts.

The Charleston is a tricky dance. There are lots of lifts and tricks

that is quite outrageous. I'm a bit scared of them! There is a

lot to take in. The music we are dancing to is super quick. You have

to get a lot of detail in quickly. That is really scary! Don't panic!

Don't panic! I just think that Blackpool will be the perfect

environment for it. So, after a tough weekend they have

bounced back. Please, give a huge warm welcome to Natalie and Artem!

I'm so glad you are back. We have missed you. First up, it is really

great to see you here. Are you fully recovered? I am fully recovered,

feeling great and raring to go. But Artem, you are sitting like

that, have you now injured yourself? We are racing each other to A One

week I do my knee in, then he does in his leg. Then I break his nose.

Then I feel tired... Oh, Artem, the mic is not working as well as your

neck! There you go. That's better! Thank goodness. Let's talk about

last weekend. Artem how upsetting was it for you to see Natalie in

peril like that? I think it was more upsetting for Natalie. Not that I

was upset, but I think she was working so hard that week. Really

looking forward to the dance. She was tuning in. It was a really fun

week. Then what happens, it is all of a sudden, it is like...

Frustrating. It looked like the most amazing

dance. Will we get to see it? That is what everybody is asking? I don't

know. If you make to the final we could

see it? How hard has the training been for you Natalie? It was a

fierce dance? It was a fierce dance. I think, unfortunately, it was just

almost an inevitable outcome after having had such a difficult week

earlier with my back. I did not rest then. I carried on.

It was just my body saying slow down a little bit.

Just stop and lie down. Yes.

How bad is your neck, Artem? Have you jarred it? He tried to lift me!

Let's put it this way, I will have very good ure.

Great. When were you able to go back to training? Monday afternoon.

Feeling so much better. The all-clear from the doctor. I had a

good sleep. That is all it took. I am so thankful to all that sent

messages, saying get well soon. It was lovely for the support.

Good. You are back in the training room, but it appears that Artem has

made a new friend, have been you? Have a look.

There is a snail on the mat! There is an

So cute! So cute! Artem's little friend. They are not ears, they are

called tentacles. They with have message from the snail for you,

Artem. Have a look. So cute.

I love you Artem. Good luck in Blackpool! Wasn't that lovely? !

I love you Artem. Good luck in Blackpool! Wasn't that lovely? Yes,

a snail. Now, the Charleston next. Another fast dance. Have you been

tempted to slow it down? Looking at the footage, it doesn't look like

it. Not really. We have taken it day by

day. We have taken it easy. Unfortunately for Artem, in the

middle of a lift he had... See, I can't do that anymore.

No. Maybe for Saturday it will be OK.

He has done himself in. We had to pull back a tiny bit, but we are

enjoying ourselves. Every week we bring the drama.

I am not laughing at you, I would not expect anything less.

Hey, a Strictly alert. You will be the first couple to perform a

Charleston on Strictly at Blackpool. It is true. It is a fact! Yes, thank

you, Brendan Cole. That is good. So with the tricks you have a few

lifts, how will it go with the neck? It will be amazing.

OK. Is it nice to be near home turf? Have you lots of fraendz family

coming? Definitely. It is like performing at home. Really amazing

and exciting. Emotional. An amazing celebration from where we have come

from the start of the show. I don't think any of us could envisage

Blackpool such. So, to go to home territory it is exciting.

This is your music you are dancing to... Come on, from the Great

Gatsby. I want to do the cardboard shelf but

it is Charleston! Artem, the last time you performed at Blackpool you

were with Kara, you got two tense -- tens, can you match it We will give

it our best shot, right? Yeah! Good luck this week. Please, don't break

her and try not to break him anymore! Give it up for Natalie and

Artem! And the snail! Back to the training room. As the pressure to

perform well in Blackpool mounts up, it has been a rollercoaster of a

week for our couples. Here is how they are preparing for the Big One!

I am dancing the Samba. It is fast. Or as Anya says not as slow as I

think. This is a carnival party dance, the Samba. It is challenging.

I am trying to keep it traditional. There is the twist, the turns, lots

of rhythm business going on. Rhythm and rhythm. Patrick has a lot of

natural rhythm. I have to find a way to channel all of that.

With the routine, I am trying to find where I am, but it is coming

along. We are doing a Paso Doble. It is a

very masculine, a strong dance. I am hoping that Ashley will pull it off.

Now, I thought I would know the #12e7s -- know the steps, that I

could just link them together but the Paso Doble has its own steps.

The hands are different, the posture is different. It is like starting

from the beginning again. You whacked me in the head. It is not

his dance. He is struggling. The main things to get right are the

character, the strength, the passion and the routine.

Quickstep, one minute you are going one way, the next direction you are

upside down. The hard things are to get right are

the steps. It is hectic but with a lovely natural beauty of relaxed,

smooth, flowing move the, but there is lots of choreography.

It is fun. I believe in Sophie, she has the ability to deliver. I know

it will be a lovely one to dance in Blackpool, but at the moment I don't

know what is going on. She will know. Don't worry. Please,

welcome Sophie and Brendan! I know, you lovely two some. Can I say, you

were amazing on Saturday. The highest score for you for a while.

Did you feel you were back? Here I am? ! It was a beautiful dance. I

loved the routine. I thought I wanted it to be something I could

take away as a memory from Strictly. It is very exciting that was me.

And I loved your mum's face watching you. It made me well up.

Was she crying again? She had a big smile on her face. She may are cried

after. How much did you enjoy playing the femme fatale? I really

enjoyed it. I loved the routine it was a great week in training. It was

a different mood for me. Starting in the spotlight with the chair. It

felt cool and grown up. Wonderful. Brendan, Sophie still had

a fair amount of critic from the judges. Len said he wanted more

ufrp. What did you make of the comments? I was frustrated. I think

it is one of the best dances I have done on Strictly, a lot of that was

due to Sophie. I wanted a very indance. Sophie delivered what I

asked for. When I finished I was ecstatic. To come up against the

criticism, four eights were OK, but it was amazing. I watched it back. I

still feel the same way. So I suppose what the judges are asking

for is a bit of flamboyance, but the Argentine Ta nshg go was great, it

did not require them. And of course we have to please the judges and the

fans. I am hoping to turn it around. And when you are dancing, you are

giving it all your welly and ufrp, aren't you? I am. I appreciate that

Brendan is being incredibly supportive, but I am here to learn.

I am taking what the judges said and hoping to incorporate it. I want to

improve. I want to be better. You were amazing out there. That

dance was sensational. I have no other word for it.

It is wonderful how you stand up for her.

And praise for the choreography, after ten years on the show it must

mean something when the judges say it is nice work? It really does.

Again, back to Sophie, she is inspiring me to do some good work. I

am chuffed with it. As you get older you learn. I love choreography. I

love the theatrical thing and putting it out there to people.

Thank you very much. It is very nice! I should have just say thank

you! I love seeing you get emotional, Brendan. It is wonderful.

We know you have worked hard on the lifts. As they say, no pain, no

gain. Pick yourself up! It seems to get

this right, you must be in a moderate amount of pain and

discomfort. That one goes that way.

All I need is a Twister mat. My back is saying" are you doing?" I have

had some good injuries. She is jumping in mid-air to land on her

face. This is what happens when you don't

wear a knee pad. Sorry! I nearly got one... Watch out for those! Nasty.

That makes me wansd cross my legs. -- wince.

So, you are doing the Quickstep. How is it going? It has been a good

week. Tricky actually. Challenging. They don't call it the Quickstep for

nothing. It is so fast, but yesterday and today has been a

turning point. The Quickstep has a lot of content.

To learn it all and to get the right feeling. It did not come together

properly until today, but it was firing today. I am looking forward

to it. That is what we want to hear. And

surely a great dance to do at the Tower Ballroom. One of the most

beautiful ballrooms in the world? Very special. A lovely memory to

take home with me. And the Quickstep has a close

relationship to the Charleston, is that right? Charleston, what is

that? Remember that little thing we used to do when you were young? I

have not gone down the Charleston route. I want each dance to be

special in its own right. We have done a full on Quickstep.

There is nothing left out. Let's put it that way. If I can keep up I will

be happy. If Sophie can, I will be ecstatic. Let's listen to the music

it is Shirley Bassey. # I get hungry for dinner at

eight... I like the old-fashioned songs. I don't like this modern

nonsense. There has been lots of fights on the

forum about traditional music. Sophie, you are used to performing

in front of big crowds as a pop star. How does that peep you for

Blackpool? Not as much as I would have hoped! I am hoping to drink it

all in. It is a one-off and that ballroom is beautiful. When I am

dancing, I know I will be the best girl dancing the Quickstep in that

ballroom at that moment. So that is the best way to think about it.

I'll put a frock on. Not again. Put the frock away! Thank

you very much, Sophie and Brendan. We wanted to find out what our

professionals really thought of each other. So we invited them to take

part in a poll, to discover, who is the funniest, the loudest, the most

goody and the most high maintenance. Tonight, let's find out who is the

most grumpy. I can tell you! Who is the grumpiest in the morning? That

is easy. I think it would be Karen. She is always grumpy without food.

It definitely has to be me. . I am happy in the morning. I don't

know these grumpy people. Kristina! Artem! Artem. He's going to kill me.

Me! The most vain of the group has to be Brendan Cole. I love him,

don't get me wrong but there is a lot of I am, I am, going on. He

really cares about his looks. He does look really good. So,

algentlemans it is -- Aljax. I would say Artem.

Artem! He is quite handsome. He knows that the ladies like looking

at him. He is definitely worried about his chest and face and hair

all of the time. I love myself! All of them. They are

professional dancers. I love that. It is funny. More

visits to the Ballot Box over the coming weeks. Time now to the

training room to meet the couples dancing to ensure that their dance

is a dance and not an illusion. We are doing the American Smooth.

You get the feeling of Fred and Ginger. It sweeps you back to the

old movies. It is a quintessential ballroom dance. The main thing is

the timing. The judges have picked me up on that. It is crucial to get

the timing accurate. I will be sloshing her about.

The lifting could be a problem. I like my feet on the ground to be

safe. If I chuck her up and catch her, she will be fine.

We are doing the Jive. It is a fast dance with lots of bouncing, kicks

and flicks. Keep up the energy from the beginning to the end of the

dance. It requires quick footwork, bounce and it has to look easy and

fun. We are going to have fun this week.

That is our main thing and enjoy it and then get black to what we have

loved doing together, having a laugh! I think it will show Mark's

ability to dance, to act, to perform and to shine. I believe this dance

will be one of his best. We are dancing Paso Doble in

Blackpool. I love it the way that Kevin does it with lots of fire in

its belly. The The Paso Doble is going well,

but Susanna is finding it difficult to be serious with me.

I am trying not to giggle! Susanna has been struggling with the twist

turns. They are tricky, they are fast.

There is a spin at the end, where I grab Kevin's wrist. I often end up

bumping into him then forget the final position. That has the

potential to look rather than tragic, sort of tragic/comic. That

is not what we are looking for! Drop the skirt! Please welcome, Susanna

and Kevin. You can't blame me for taking that seriously! That is

funny. The highest scoring waltz of the series. Len said you lit up the

floor. What a weekend, Susanna? I loved it. I am speechless. It was

glorious to dance. It was Kevin's choreography, beautiful. It was

lovely to dance with Kevin. Beautiful music, the singing, the

dress. And the dress. It was beautiful. I

heard you got emotional and watched it back and got a bit teary-eyed.

Yes. You will always have that moment

I know. Amazing. Now, when Karen Hardy was here, she

said she thought it could -- should have been four tens, what do you

think to that? I say that Karen has the best score there, she knows her

stuff. I really love dancing it, like Susanna was saying, I am

speechless about the whole dance. It almost does not matter, but four

nines was the best score, so we will take that.

And Zoe, I have had so many messages about it. People have been lovely

about it. That adds to the emotion that people really enjoyed watching

it. And they contacted with it. They

wanted to be you or Kevin! Darcey was impressed with the frame.

Everyone has been critical about it along the way.

You must have worked hard on that? It looked perfect on Saturday.

I have a feeling we were working so hard on the technique, that the

shoulders relaxed, but there was a point when Kevin looked at me and

said that the shoulder was up, just get it sorted. I thought, I really,

then I realised I had to sort it out.

I like that seriousness. Yes, Kevin. Whatever you say. The great thing is

you are picking up the technical stuff, but at the expense of more

everyday movements for Susanna, have a look.

I have a problem walking. I don't normally have a problem

walking but apparently when I am dancing. Just do a normal walk.

Complicated footwork and technique, easy. Ask her to put a foot in front

of the other, she goes... Do you really concentrate on how you walk.

You cannot actually walk! Like Farmer Giles. I don't walk like

that. Yeah, you do. I think that is really good.

I'm not sure that the judges will think it is.

It is brilliant. Under the microscope we see it all.

Today the one thing that was really not walking -- working was the walk!

But it is the Paso Doble. The walk is dramatic. How is it going for

you, the Paso Doble? I love it. Really love it. The usual thing on

Monday, didn't have a clue. Didn't think it could ever happen. I need

to be careful with the skirt. But I amen joying it so much. It is

great. Really fun. And Susanna, often scoring a little

lower with the Latin dances, Kevin, I am talking like you are not here,

don't mind me! Do you think this could buck the trend? I hope so. I

didn't know that fact. I think that Susanna is a cracking Latin dancer.

She does them really well. I don't see her as... Thank you, but I do

get lower scores on the Latin. This could be the one.

To do the Paso Doble, you need dramatic music, you have a brilliant

bit of Bizet! Oh, yes! I love it. Looking brilliant. It is fast. Is it

is a super speedy Paso Doble? Is it? Yes. It is full on.

Obviously you are a journalist, you have probably been to Blackpool to

the party conferences, is it funning to going for a more glitzy affair? I

heard a lot of political speeches in Blackpool and interviewed a lot of

politicians there and eaten curries late with political journalists so

it is a delight to go and dance in the Ballroom and to be there with

kefin and the other dancers involved in the show. Hilarious fun.

And the entire Clifton family are going to be with you on the dan

floor? Yes. Tell me? A big group number. Lots of

people in it. Extra dancers, kids. Social dancers, whatever. More on

the floor than ever before. Literally everyone involved from

Kevin's family and Karen of course, I feel like a bit part. Remember me?

! Good luck with the drop the skirt and the wafting! Susanna and Kevin.

That is it for today. Tomorrow at 6.30pm all of the Blackpool back

stage action from James Jordan. He is catching up with Ashley and Ola.

And then on Friday, the Sister Scissors and Jodie Penger and Jason

Donovan. See