Episode 30 Strictly - It Takes Two

Once upon a time there were three

beautiful girls who went

to the Strictly academy,

they were each assigned

very hazardous dance routines.

But tonight, I take

them away from all that

and now they work for me.

My name is Zoe.

Live from London this is No Such --

It Takes Two.

Zoe's Angels. I love those ladies.

Hello and welcome to It Takes Two!

Give it up for my independent women!

There'll be more from them

and their partners later on.

Plus, joining us on tonight's Friday

panel - Lisa Riley, comedian

Tom Allen, and Martine McCutcheon.

It will be a goodie.

But back to business.

It's Friday and I can

confirm we are only...

away from the next live Strictly

show - so let's get cracking!

First up, we sent our very own Welsh

wonder Gethin for another trip

to Elstree this morning to report

on all the backstage gossip.

Let's see what he's been up to.

Welcome back to Elstree. Hallowe'en

is over, it's still scary stuff for

our couples as they take to the

dance floor for their final

rehearsals on a Friday. At the

moment, it's the tango. Let's take a

look.

Debs flying high after last

Saturday. It was her birthday in the

week. Will it be a good night

tomorrow, we will find out. I have

plenty of people to catch up with.

I'll see you in a bit. Looking

dashing tonight, Gethin. More from

him later in the show.

Right, I think it's time

to meet our first guests,

and the beast was certainly

unleashed during their

Tango at the weekend.

TIGER GROWL.

Steady, girl.

It's Maneater Alexandra

and the rather tasty Gorka!

MUSIC: Maneater by Nelly Furtado.

She's like a tigeress. He you attack

everything fearlessly.

Every time

you changed direction, terrifyingly

good. Sharp accents. I really and

truly loved it.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

# I want to dance with somebody

# I want to feel the heat with

somebody

# Yeah, I want to dance with

somebody

# With somebody who loves me...

#. When you think you can't love

these two any more, they do that. So

good. Lovely to see you both. Cool

me down, last weekend thats with a

hot tango. It was unbelievable. How

much did you enjoy it?

I loved. It I

really loved. It I was nervous, I

will not lie. Making it to

Hallowe'en week full stop, I was so

excited. I'm out of breath. I'm not

fit! I had the best time. It was so

much fun. My nerves were a lot. It

is like that every week. Have you

toen Chael positivity and go out and

have the best time.

You don't look

nervous. You -

If only that was the

case. The eyeball helped me hide

that. The one eyeball. Then it

starts to move around.

Gorka you

were hungry for top scores. The

highest scoring tango of the series.

APPLAUSE

Were you a happy boy?

Very happy

boy. Not just for the scores. I was

happy because of how she danced and

performed the number, ittic hakes me

happy. The only thing I wanted her

was to be comfortable and feel good

when she does the number. She was

happy. So, I'm happy.

Everyone is

happy.

I'm happy.

We are all a bit

more in love. Shirley said it was

almost perfect. A tiny mistake. What

happened?

Yeah.

She went on the

left, not the right.

Whatever Gorka

says. I do what I'm told!

Darren

Bennett won Strictly Come Dancing,

an old pro, in that moment when your

foot went out, you did the grip and

whip. We never heard of that before.

He said it's very difficult to do,

recover your partner. They have to

have a good core and be good. Which

Alexandra is

It's my job. We are a

credit to each other and are

connected and have our bodies

connected it makes it easier. When

you have a mistake something goes

wrong you can help each other go in

place. That is what happens. Her

body was connected to mine.

I knew

where he was going.

If he was sloppy

it would be...

Yes. Like a muppet.

You were thrown under his legs,

again.

Again!

She love it.

I will

put you through my legs I'm like -

let's go, babes!

I will put it in

the Cha Cha Cha tomorrow.

It's the

arm bit tomorrow. Don't do that.

Which arm?

Whatever one he wants to

do. I go with the flow. Flow. He

always smells amazing. Trust me.

Looks good, smells good - nightmare

for you Alexandra! Your sister was

in the audience last week.

Yes.

What

did she make of it?

It was her first

show. She has been away and not

available to come. She loved it and

had the best time. She said as a

family it's what they look forward

to every Saturday night. We are

focussing on it as a family. It's a

dream for us as a family. I cannot

thank the public enough for their

support and keeping us in. We are

having the best experience.

I know.

We are all having the best

experience watching you, I have to

say. Tomorrow you are dancing to a

disco classic. One of of my

favourite records ever.

# I got the music in me

#. That will be called The Gorka the

Corker! What have you Donetsk to

him. I like it?

It's you, guys. Yes.

APPLAUS

So, so good. That is I Got The Music

In Me. Has she the Cha Cha Cha in

her?

Cha Cha Cha Cha is one of the

most difficult dances in the show

for the girls because they wear

heels. Have to have straight legs

and it's fast. She impressed me on

the first day. I think she's doing

really well.

Thank you.

I'm quite

excited for tomorrow.

Here she is in

the training room. Ladies and

gentlemen are you excited by what

you are seeing? Yes, you are. How

are you feeling?

I'm scared, I won't

lie. I'm having the best time.

Actually, it's one of the dances

where I'm so comfortable. I feel

really comfortable doing it. I said

to Gorka yesterday in rehearsal, we

were rehearsing late, if all fails I

will go out with a smile on my face

I want to have the best time. I feel

it, we are at this point in the show

where we have a great connection. We

have built a wonderful friendship. I

just want to do you proud and just

have fun.

I think he's quite proud.

He seems quite happy. He's happy!

That's good.

I am.

If there were

worries about this dance what would

it be? Some people have struggled

this year. Alexandra says she like

this is one.

She likes it. It suits

her and the music suits her. The

music is cool cool. You need to like

the theme. We in a jazz club.

It's a role.

He says - go out there

and be yourself. Be the singer that

you are. I said what are you then?

He said - I'm just a piano player.

He's playing himself! Good luck with

it. Storm it, you beauties.

Alexandra and Gorka.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Now, I think we can all agree,

our Strictly pros have delivered

some sensational group

numbers this series.

But what lies in store

for tomorrow's Prince

themed extravaganza?

Will there be Diamonds and Pearls?

Doves crying?

Little red corvettes?

Purple Rain?

I think it's time to find out!

Take a look at this.

This week we are dancing like it's

1999.

Is it new year's. I love new

year's.

No. This week's group dance

is a tribute to pop legend Prince!

Ah. Let's go.

The style of dance is

a fusion. I'm not from the ballroom

world. I do hip-hop, animation and

breaking, those type of dance moves.

I love putting them together with

the Cha Cha and the Jive. I fuse the

styles together because I feel

that's the perfect way to pay

tribute to Prince. He was a style in

his own.

The choreography is

amazing. Instead of our boys

sometimes we've got this prop.

A

partner section with a third partner

being the door frame. A lot of

back-and-forth between the guy and

the girl and the door frame. It's a

little crazy. This is a great

section. This is when Purple Rain

kicks in. I get to dance with my

wife - purple and rain. We are.

Purple Rain.

We have umbrellas as

well which is tricky.

We throw it up

and we have to catch it.

Flipping

it, dancing on them. Everything

could go wrong. We all love doing

different styles, different steps.

It's always good to learn. We all

love Prince. We love dancing to it.

I can't wait.

Sadly, that is all the

time we have. I'm going to get into

my little red corvette and head

home. Make sure you don't miss this

performance this weekend.

Opening

umbrellas inside - naughty.

Now it wouldn't be a Friday

without my next guests,

once again we have scoured

the nation to find three

of Strictly's biggest

super fans, who just

so happen to be celebrities.

Let's go crazy for Lisa Riley,

Tom Allen and Martine McCutcheon!

MUSIC: Let's Go Crazy

by Prince & The Revolution.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Hello.

Hello, my darlings. So

excited to see you all. Martine,

looking gorgeous.

Thank you.

We have

made it to the halfway point of

Strictly.

Yes.

We are giddy.

Yes.

What are you making of it at this

stage?

This is the exciting bit for

me. Basically everybody ups their

game they want to be in Blackpool.

This is it. Let's see the good bits

now.

Exciting stuff. Thom.

Hello.

Exciting to have you I am too here.

. It must be wonderful for you.

Your

mum is here?

Yes and auntie. They

have taken a sedative. Don't look at

them.

I didn't know you could bring

You can bring family.

Whoever you

want - they are desperate.

Who

impressed you the most?

I'm glad you

asked that Zoe. Debbie, we are all

taken be aback. Alold fashioned

showbusiness. She puts the work. In

how did she end that dance last week

with her legs in the air. I couldn't

do that! She's really brought it. I

didn't can't even do a sumba class.

Susan Calman, a friend of mine -

She

is brilliant.

She works hard. Never

done dancing before. She is bringing

it. Doing amazing dancing. Super

impressed.

Lisa is back.

APPLAUSE

Dancing with Robin in series 11. We

will start with Debbie and Giovanni.

They are doing the Tango this

weekend to I Got A Feeling by the

Black Eyed Peas. Martine, top of the

leaderboard last week, can this

Tango keep them?

1 hurn %. I think

she's just so naturally graceful.

Some things you can't learn. She has

those lines that we would all die

for when you are dancing. She's just

got it. I think she will deliver

every week. I think they could win

it.

She said it, she said it!

I do,

I do.

It could happen. Aston and

Janette next. Viennese Waltz for

them. They are dancing to the

Jacksons.

Famous for their Waltz of

course!

Thank you for Sayfulloing

that Tom, we were thinking that.

Here they are in training. This was

your lowest scoring dance -

Week 2.

How dare I. What do you make of

these two?

Brilliant. Once you have

the spins together and you can cope

with the dissinessness. They have my

pocket rockets. I get excited when I

see them. He is growing and growing,

he loves abouting there. They will

nail it. Everything they do turn it

turns to gold.

. Very excited. I'm

quite sweaty. They have a 70s Barber

Shop's theme. Does that excite you,

Tom?

No!

LAUGHTER

I love watching Debbie, and I know a

little bit about ballroom dancing

because I did go to lessons, above a

supermarket...

Oh, God, here we go,

the expert...

I am a bit of an

expert. If you go to a ballroom

dancing lesson you end up dancing

with quite a lot of older women, who

think they are Edith, which is fine,

but every time I watch daddy I am

blown away, how did she get those

legs! And Bruno's face in the

background! I think whatever the

music is she will be fine.

Ruth and Anton up next -

how do you think they'll

do dancing the paso doble?

MUSIC: The Shady Dame

From Seville by Robert Preston

Ruth will be channelling

the Shady Dame From Seville -

are you looking forward to it?

How do you think they will do with

the paso doble, Martine?

I just

think Ruth is superwoman across the

board. She has so many jobs, that

woman, 18 jobs or so on the go! We

know her. She still has time to go

home and have a gin and make it all

easy, doesn't she? She is absolutely

brilliant and I just think that she

loves Anton, loves her dancers, and

the fact she enjoys it so much will

make improved every week.

So good!

Moving onto Mollie and AJ's foxtrot

- she loves ballroom.

To Call Me Irresponsible. An old

classic, Lisa.

Are you loving

the look of this?

Yes, the was come across, and she

always looks so safe in AJ's arms. I

think she will bring it on the dance

floor.

The right dance to up her

game, definitely.

OK.

Jonnie and Oti.

Tong, they are doing a salsa.

I

always think of the sauce, you know,

Susan and Kevin doing a guacamole

next week!

LAUGHTER

They dipped down the leaderboard

this week with 20 points.

Do you think he can pull it

back with the salsa?

We all enjoyed watching him but I

think it is difficult to do any kind

of romantic dance, when you... It is

hardly Buena Sarries, is it?

LAUGHTER

I am sure they will do a great job

and we will all pretend it is

lovely.

.

LAUGHTER

Martine, could this be the perfect

moment?

Of course it will be. I'm

going to be positive, optimistic

about it all, we all love trier, and

I think they will come back this

week.

Please come back in about 15

minute s' time.

Brilliant stuff - give it up

for our Friday panel!

Now, it's not all fun and games

here at It Takes Two - oh, no!

There's one thing we

take very seriously...

Eyes down, everyone -

it's time for Ballroom Bingo!

Good evening, Strictly fans. Is

down, because it is time for

Ballroom Bingo! -- eyes down.

Clickety click, 66. Which pro has

the most... Attitude?

I will say

Karen.

Karen is the queen of sass.

I

will say Oti.

Oti, she will tell you

right away.

It's the dancing Queen,

number 17. Which pro is the best

dancer?

Anton du Beke is the best.

I

really like Paschall's style. If I

see myself, that just looks

arrogant...

What a silly question.

Me!

I am going to have to see

myself.

I would say that Neil is the

best answer.

That's your lot, folks!

But remember, keep spinning!

STUDIO: Thank you, Mr du Beke!

Right, let's go to

the training room now

and find out how Mollie and AJ and

Ruth and Anton are getting along.

Oh, my goodness, I love the foxtrot,

it feels so good, romantic, like you

are in a film from the 40s

something. It reminds me of my

grandparents.

I don't think it is

very hard, but when you get it, you

can slow read this room with this

beautiful foxtrot.

This week we have

put in as many hours as always.

Fantastic. Here to really an hour

mark this week. You just stopped...

LAUGHTER

I am loving the paso doble, so

passionate and fiery, so this week I

have to stop being self-conscious

and I have to give it.

I love the

paso doble, for the simple reason it

is the closest of all the Latin

dances the ballroom dancers, so for

me it feels like a proper dance.

I

am a fierce and fearless woman in

this, and my husband would say I can

be quite fierce, so I will just

think of him!

Eamonn Holmes, grrr extract just

joking, I love him.

Now considering Gethin gets

an access all areas pass

during his adventures around

Elstree...

It's funny really that he always

ends in up wardrobe.

Let's see what he got up to.

Walking through the corridors, and

it just feels a little more empty

than usual. We are doing and Anton,

but it feels a little different this

week the usual?

Yes, fewer people.

Scary...

I was going to say, does it

add a little when you know the end

is near? Blackpool, two weeks away?

Is it two weeks?

Like you didn't

know!

Do you know what, I must say

even though it feels like we are

halfway, there is still half left.

It is not like we have done every

possible.

You would think there is a

lot more to do.

I recognise him!

Years from Strictly Come Dancing.

How's it going, AJ? I'm very well,

thanks. Are you ready for tomorrow?

And ready for the studio now.

Can I

get a selfie?

I was just chatting to

the boys about tomorrow night. Well

you are doing that selfie... Both of

your music tracks, a sensation. What

a piece to dance to, Natalie Cole?

I

have trained next to Anton couple of

times and have been hearing what he

has as well so I think we will be

having a bit of song-off, who has

the coolest song this week.

And

Michael Jackson.

I do really love

that music.

By the dancers looking

good?

Well, I have seen my dance and

it is looking pretty amazing!

LAUGHTER

Just show me the first step, whilst

we finish this... I know you have

plenty to do before... Thank you,

lovely stuff. Back to you. Not a bad

lift!

It takes a team to lift the...

I love the fact they just did a

selfie during the interview!

Right, who would like to

meet our next couple?

They managed to tame a dragon

with their fiery foxtrot,

but unfortunately the same couldn't

be said for the judges.

Bow down - it's Susan and Kevin!

Trying to maintain those shoulders,

you were keeping it down, I could

see you were working on that yet.

It

lacked grace and elegance, not your

best dance for needed a -- working

on that neck.

Always fun to watch

you. You always give it 110%.

I love a fine entrance! Hello, you

gorgeous two. I tell you what.

You certainly lived up to the title

of 'Queen of Dragons' -

there was flying, fire

and a fierce new look!

He did it feel when it all came

together out on the floor?

It felt

amazing, wonderful, Halloween night

on Strictly, we did in a big

performance, I was dancing with

Kevin Clifton, it was unbelievable

and I loved every second.

Aw! We

loved it, didn't we?

APPLAUSE

Strong wig game from you too -

gave Ruth a run for her money!

But how much did you enjoy it out

there on the floor?

You know I love

dressing up! As soon as Halloween or

any of the theme weeks come on I

think, what can we dress up as, the

first thought in my mind. When we

first met, when all the pros and

celebs meet each other, chatting

away, it transpired we were both

entered Game of Thrones and we

thought, yeah, imagine if we

partnered together, we can do a Game

of Thrones theme!

Dreams can come

true!

LAUGHTER

But let's talk about your foxtrot -

some rather harsh comments

from the judges.

What's your take on their critique?

That hurts?

The strange thing is

they said it needed more grace, and

it may surprise you to know that

Grace is my middle name. No,

literally, Grace is my middle name,

which is a shame... But we are in

Strictly Come Dancing, the judges

are part of the competition. They

didn't like what we did last week,

but they will love what we do this

week.

They will!

I like it.

I love

the fact you came to Susan's defence

as well. So much support for you.

Lisa Mitchell wrote online:

"Susan, you and Kevin

are the definition of

what we love about Strictly!

You were amazing,

joyful, perfection!"

APPLAUSE

I think it's clear how much Susan

loves dancing on the show -

that must be an utter joy a for you,

Kevin, when creating routines?

Yes, I think we clicked

straightaway. Like I said, when we

first met each other and met all the

celebs, Susan and I clicked and were

very chatty straightaway. We were

the same sort of stuff, and started

working off each other. We sort of

go, oh, do you like this? We could

do this, do that, we both get

excited about it all. Then we both

get excited about the number, then

she throws herself into every single

number, and every day is just an

absolute joy working with Susan. I'm

absolutely loving this series.

And

we can feel that and that is a

joyful thing. I want to join in too!

So just like the Bee Gees,

let's get to some jive talking!

You're dancing to this

Shakin' Stevens classic...

MUSIC: This Ole House

by Shakin' Stevens

The first single you ever bought?

Yes, it reminds me of school discos,

Panda pop.

Well, who doesn't love a

bit of Shakin; Stevens, lots of good

memories for people, a brilliant

track, a lovely fun jive for people

to watch on a Saturday night.

Kevin,

are you happy with how things have

gone this week?

I'm really happy. I

think training has gone brilliant.

We have it two weeks whether judges

have been quite hard on our dances.

Look at those kicks, the bones and

the slide?

I am really happy with

how it was going, but then I was

really happy over the last two

weeks...

The main thing is on you

know, I have done a lot of things in

my life, but a lot of other people

have liked it as well, although some

haven't. It is personal taste. It is

like coriander!

It is, yes, I'm a

huge fan!

LAUGHTER

Perfectly demonstrated. I believe

there is a little theme... Some kind

of DIY?

Well, after last week's Game

of Thrones we are downscaling it to

a painter and decorator, painting a

wall, then we do our wee jive.

Of

course you do! Those two things go

together perfectly.

Now Kevin, we love your impressions,

but from the looks of things you're

not content with just impersonating

the mighty Ballas -

take a look at this...

Susan Calman and Kevin Clifton...

Kevin Clifton... Kevin Clifton.

Dancing the Viennese waltz, the

cha-cha-cha, foxtrot... Dancing the

foxtrot! Dancing the Viennese waltz!

LAUGHTER

Rolling her eyes when I

turn my back. You said you were

really enjoying dancing with me.

What have we started? ! Good luck

tomorrow. We adore the two of you.

Susan and Kevin.

Thank you.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

That is a good eye roll.

We've got something

new for you all now!

As we all know, our pros are some

of the best in the business,

but what have been their personal

highlights while

working on Strictly?

Let's find out as Pasha talks us

through his Strictly CV.

Ladies and gentlemen, please give it

up for the new boy on the Strictly

block, Pasha. Becoming a pro dancer

on Strictly in 2011 was an amazing

opportunity. When I walked on the

Strictly stage for the first time, I

was a little bit nervous, but

dancing with all the pro girls, not

a bad way to start, isn't it? ! My

first partner was Chelsea, very

bumibly and energetic, talented and

capable in dance. The only thing I

had to work on is to understand her

accent.

I'm knackerd now!

Going into

my first Strictly final felt

amazing. It was the hardest week of

our Strictly experience where you

have to deliver no matter what your

best performance.

That was

dramatically romantic. You have

you've been a joy to watch this

entire series.

One of my favourite

dances on Strictly came in 2012 when

I was paired up with lovely Kimberly

Walsh.

For me as a choreographer the fusion

of Cha Cha Cha and Tango it was

technically demanding, but we got

40!

Dance of the season so far.

We

lost out in the final, but managed

to stay great friend over the years.

She still comes to watch me dance

every year with her mum. In 2013 I

was partnered up with beautiful

Rachel Riley. I was really gutted

when we left the competition, but

our chemistry developed into

something else and we're still

together now and still dancing.

Caroline Flack, Series 12, the

golden year. From the first moment

of meeting Caroline, I knew she had

a lot of potential, but she lacked

confidence. Starting from the Week 1

she thought that everyone else was

so much better than her. I think

Jive in Blackpool finally made

Caroline believe in herself as a

dancer and from there on no-one

could stop her.

That was class, fast

and you're built to last!

The Show

Dance in the Final will always stand

out to me. It was quite a risky

contemporary rumba and Caroline was

going through a lot in her personal

life and I thought it would be a

great idea to transform what she

felt into dance.

Pasha, you are a

brave man and that was full of

risks, just gorgeous storytelling.

We were the fist couple to receive

all perfect scores in all the dances

in the final. Unbelievable.

When they announced our names, I

think it took a split second for it

to sink in.

Caroline and Pasha!

That's us - yes. That is us. We

lifted that Glitterball up - it's

quite heavy, by the way. Every

celebrity is so different and

figuring out how to unlock their

dance potential, it's quite a tricky

thing. When you leave the

competition, you can't help but feel

that you've let your partner down.

It's never the case, but you start

thinking - what could I have done

better? That's just the nature of

being a Strictly pro.

Being on Strictly, it's like being a

part of a family. It's such a

special part of my life.

Gorgeous. That dance with Caroline,

amazing.

Right, time now to get our teeth

stuck into tonight's final couple.

They had a lot at "stake"

with their vampy jive

at the weekend - luckily for them

it was "fangtastic"!

It's Gemma and Aljaz.

There was so much content in that

dance. Very, very difficult. Very,

very fast.

There were some mistakes

at the beginning when you started

off, you got on the wrong foot.

I've

got to congratulate you on the

spins, good amount of retraction. It

was great.

# I want to know, if you'll be my

girl

#. Hello you naughty twosome. I can

hear you being naughty at the back.

Never!

Always.

That was not us.

No

that was Debbie... As the kids would

say you slayed -

It's my mum. Hold

on.

Mum!

So sorry. Very funny. I'm

not allowed it here any more. Very,

very funny. As I was saying... You

slayed that dance, it was amazing.

Look at you go. So incredible. How

was it for you, Gemma?

It wasn't the

best one for me. I did really enjoy.

It I for got the beginning of the

routine. Watching it back on TV you

couldn't see that much. How it felt

to how it looked was different. I

was disa-appointed I was gutted,

really.

What happened? That moment

where you forgot it?

I was supposed

to walk towards him and do four

little steps I walked towards him

and went - he just grabbed me. He

just went - twist!

Hallowe'en! Let's

do hands.

What do you learn from

that? You were facing each other at

the beginning. What do you do when

it happens to your partner to help

them recover?

From now we will not

turn away from each other - EVER.

No!

Just be normal!

We will take all

the turns out. Ballroom hold will be

funny as we will be looking at each

other. It was a split moment of...

Panic.

Panic actually. The Jive, I

put every single step there was in

there.

There was a lot.

There was.

To go wrong at the beginning.

Impressive to pick it up from making

a mistake in the dance as fast as

that to f forget about it and

deliver a smashing, smashing Jive.

Smashing Jive.

BOOM!

Bruno said it

was proper full on jazz. Craig loved

your retraction and your energy as

well. He's constantly naughty.

What

are you doing?

They are great

things. Your best Jive score you've

got.

Was it?

Yes.

He has never got

so high.

The others must have been

terrible then! If that was your best

score!

You were excited about going

through, I love this reaction. So,

so good. I think we might have

slo-moed it.

Is I get scared. Yes,

yes.

You are going in gently. Do you

always get that excited about

things?

Yeah. No matter how good or

bad you dance on the night, no

matter what the comments are, it's

people who vote. I would never say -

we are safe, we are through. I would

never do that. You genuinely never

know. When you are stood waiting

it's horrible. When you are called,

you have been waiting so long you

feel so grateful. It's literally I'm

chuffed all the time. I'm squeezing

him to death.

She is so strong. Are

you excited about your Salsa?

Yes I

like it. It's difficult. They all

are. Every week is difficult.

Everything you learnt the previous

week you drilled into your head you

have to forget about and start

afresh. It's a great song, fun and

we start facing each other.

I hear there is a polynesian theme.

This isn't actually your music that

you are dancing to. This is the

music you are dancing to. That's not

the music they are dancing to.

I

like that song, by the way.

How has

training gone this week?

Really

good. I like the Salsa it's about

fun. There is not much technique.

First week, three lifts. We are

going to say -

Telling me you are

lifting Aljaz.

I feel #15i8 safer

lifting him.

How have you found

them?

OK. Difficult putting your

trust in someone to throw you

around. He's not dropped me, which

is great. A bit bruised.

You get

used to it.

Thank you for trusting

me.

A lot of women and men have

dreamt about being thrown around by

Aljaz. What is the reality of that?

It's not all it's cracked up to be.

It's quite of - do this. You are

like, ah!

Wow!

Gemma has been be an

inconspire situation ration.

She is

an inspiration every day. When we

were paired up, what she can dance.

There was that one video of Gemma

Ibiza.

The party island.

Going for.

It I got inspired.

Can you show us

the move? Come on, here's the music.

That is the move. Honestly.

Honestly, it was much better. I

don't look good in a bikini. That

made it into the routine

Absolutely.

Yeah.

We look forward to that. Good

luck tomorrow. Good luck with the

lifts and the juggle. Gemma and

Aljaz.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It really does work! Love him.

Now, whilst I carry on trying

to master this dance move,

let's see if Aston and Jonnie have

been mastering their routines

in the training room...

We are doing the Viennese Waltz.

We are back in hold. I love being in

hold.

There are challenges, turns,

change step, reverse turns and

standing spin. There's a lot of

shaping in the upper body. Making it

look seamless when you are moving

that fast. It's hard not to get

dizzy. You are constantly spinning

on the floor.

Everything will have

to be quicker and more disciplined.

Good, see. It's getting there.

This

week have we have a Salsa, so

hopefully this one we can have a lot

more fun with.

Heel, tap, one, slow.

We are having fun and going with

this nun number so it can be

amazing.

I feel like I've been

thrown so much information and my

brain has turned to mush.

The Salsa

is a party dance. We need to bring

the party to the Strictly floor.

Go for it Jonnie, believe!

Right, time to head back to Gethin,

and it's not all about the couples -

earlier today he got cosy with some

of the crew.

Let's take a look at what happened.

One man who does more steps on the

Strictly dance floor than any of the

guys behind me combined is Dom

Jackson, the steadicam operator.

Thank you for talking to us. What do

you do on Strictly Come Dancing?

I'm

part of a ten camera, multi camera

team, that work on the live shows. I

run around the dance floor making

the dancers look good.

People don't

see, it you tear around giving

everyone a different perspective?

The idea is you get shots on the

dance floor to give you a

perspective of what the dancer's

face every week when they have the

cam staring at them and the audience

and 11 million viewers -- camera.

If

you are nervous going out there to

dance. I remember you coming at me

and I thought - who is this man with

the camera, how do they react to

you?

You talk to them in rehearsals

about the specifics of the shots.

They have no idea. They are focused

on getting the moves correct they

don't see.

What has been the hardest

routine for you this year?

The

opening sequence on Hallowe'en last

week I was strung up and swung down

off the balcony behind us on the

wire. Then was unhooked and carried

on the shot for another 15 seconds

Andre, yeah, I would have liked to

have sat down afterwards, it was

actually How much does painful.

This

weigh?

It's about 22 kilos.

It keeps

you fit on a Saturday?

Oh, yes. I

don't need to go to the gym for the

rest of the week. I will have a long

lie down on Sunday this week.

You

will have your work cut out based on

the pr dance behind us. Good luck

with that. Thank you.

I love this job! That was a nice

jacket as well.

Now, like Whitney Houston,

I get "so emotional" every time

I think of this year's Strictly.

But it's not just me -

our celebrities are

feeling the love too.

Take a look at this.

Come back here, you!

If someone would have told me during

the first week I would make it to

the halfway point, then I would be

extremely happy with that.

Extremely.

Every Sunday you just

feel like it could be you. I'm just

really happy I managed to make it

this far.

The fact that Gorka and I

are at the halfway point is

absolutely insane. Just for me, to

still be a part of it, it is a dream

come true.

It's absolutely

astonishing, and I never dream for a

single second we would still be here

in week seven.

Making it the halfway

is amazing, and we asked all here,

still fighting.

I'm absolutely

loving learning a new dance each

week. This is the most amazing

experience.

You don't really want it

to end. When you are in this bubble,

it is great, but just thinking,

there is half gone, only half left.

I hope we can push on to the very

end, because that would just be...

That would be amazing.

Week seven,

and I'm still here. I can't believe

it. It is incredible, quite surreal

actually. I have to keep pinching

myself. I'm on Strictly Come

Dancing! It's amazing.

It feels fantastic because, you

know, in the beginning I didn't know

how it would go and I didn't want to

be one of the first out, and to make

it to this point, past Halloween, it

is just phenomenal.

When you start

this competition you have no idea

how many weeks you will be in it

for, but to get halfway through, I

feel really lucky and I am loving

every minute of it.

Oh, I know! It

is getting emotional!

Right, time now to talk

about the rest of

They're back - it's our glorious

Friday Panel, everyone!

Let's jump straight

into things and talk about Joe

and Katya and a Charleston.

They're wooden soldiers

- are you excited?

Like a real by! Yes, I mean, I think

he has definitely got the knees for

it.

A nice little bones they are.

Great character in the stands, do

you think, Lisa?

Absolutely, the

inner act, and the more he gets his

face out, that is what the

Charleston is about, and hopefully

the feat will do the same.

The

Charleston is so much fun and I love

it when they do the critic Rossi

legs. -- the crisscrossed legs. All

to play for, isn't it!

If Bruno is

ever off again we will just have, I

think!

LAUGHTER

Next up it's Susan and Kevin -

of last week's lowest scoring dances

- is the jive going to save them

from the same fate?

Do you think it will go down better

with the judges?

They gave them such

a hard time last week. I think they

will really come into their own last

week because she has the most

amazing bounds. When she dances she

gets up so high in these dances

seemed to sit her so I think she

will smash it. She has the most

amazing bounce.

I have known her for

12 years, know very well, and when

Craig said that to her, I just

thought, who knew that Craig had...

You know, maybe a balcony, maybe

gravel chips, but never a lawn.

I

need you as my best friend!

Susan

works so hard. She is a comedian by

trade and she is always funny. I

know she cares about the dancing so

much, so I am very supportive of her

and I think she is doing a great

job.

I don't know her, but when I am

watching her dancing I always forget

I am watching a competition. She

just oozes enjoyment.

That is what

you want to watch.

Alex and Gorka,

what are they doing? Cha-cha-cha!

Tyre, you'll love this dance, I can

tell! Let's look at them in

training. Lisa, what do you make of

these two?

She is on a one-way

motorway to the final, unbelievable.

It is the way she owns every dance,

it comes out from every pore in her.

And I saw that in the rehearsal

room, she just wants to get it

right, get better week after week,

and it is fantastic.

Glorious stuff.

I think she is ace.

She is, and what

about Davood and Nadiya? They have

an American smooth this week. They

have been stuck in the middle of the

leaderboard and people have been

saying they need a break-out dance,

but could this be the one?

Davood, I

like very much, but I didn't enjoy

his last dance very much because I

thought it was a lot of standing

still and walking forward which, to

be honest, anyone could do at a bus

queue. But I think they will be

great... And where we are talking

about Davood, can I just say again,

how great is Debbie McGee? She is 98

years old as well. How she does it,

I just don't know!

LAUGHTER

He should be a judge on the shore!

She is only 59! And just putting

that... Gemma and Aljaz, very

quickly, a salsa, Prince, what do

you reckon?

Let's have a little look

-- Martine, what do you think? I

think they could be the ones to

watch.

She is my winner, actually.

Wow!

Go, Gemma!

Who is your winner?

Debbie McGee, in every way.

What

about your best friend?

Yes, Susan,

oh, Susan! She's not here, is she?

Who is your winner, Martine?

I

genuinely, at this point in time, I

don't know, because Blackpool is

coming up, and they were all pull

out...

Who doesn't want to go to

Blackpool?

LAUGHTER

Very quickly, who is going home,

Lisa?

I think Davood and Nadiya.

I

think Debbie McGee will go because

she will be poached by Hollywood!

Martine?

I don't know, really don't

know, because they are all

surprisingly. I thought I had it

when it started, but now I just

don't know, they are all

surprisingly.

What a glorious panel.

Right, for the final

time let's head back to

the Strictly HQ to

see what Gethin got

up to earlier today.

Hi, Zoe. It is Wales against

Australia, two against one, but not

a competition, just a friendly chat.

Thanks, mate.

Mate! She is their

Welsh and she is destroyed. How has

the experience been for you so far

although you are missing your

partners?

Everyday something new,

really exciting, it is brilliant.

I

feel like Brian has not quite got

over departing the show, he is

always tweeting and texting about

it.

We miss you, Brian! Is loving it

and still supporting, checking up on

me. I actually think he is in Rome

at the moment.

He will be watching

somehow, 20? And how is the Rev?

Who

is the Rev? Just kidding! I

absolutely miss him so much, he

still sends me the old WhatsApp

message in there.

Is he still

talking about dancing?

He has joined

a dance class! He shows me little

videos, and he says, Di, I still

can't dance, but I say, you can, but

he is watching the show, and he said

every single person, he sends every

individual good luck message every

week, so that is really sweet.

I

know you guys are busy with the

pro-dances on Saturday, but a new

project, rehearsing the moral?

Children In Need. I have Mr Max

Currie.

He was my hero Blue Peter

presenter!

I don't know...

I forget

you're younger than me. How is he

doing?

Amazing, and we are doing a

jive.

I have Mr Tim Vincent. I'm

sorry, but obviously being from

Australia I never got the chance to

watch Blue Peter, so I heard all

about the badge and everything. I

have looked it up, got all the

details of it all.

It is an amazing

show under used to have some

fantastic presenters. Some, more

than others. -- and they used to

have. 30 seconds, is it?

30 seconds

each. Then we have a bit of a group

number as well so it would be really

fun.

Very busy, 24-48 hours for you

guys. Good luck with it.

Thank you.

Sorry for telling everybody your

age.

Go, Australia!

Wales!

That's all we have time for tonight!

Thanks to my guests,

and make sure you catch

all the action with Tess

and Claud tomorrow night

at 6.45 on BBC One.

I'll be back on Monday with the next

couple to leave the competition.

But now, singing us out

with Say I'm Not Alone

from her new album Lost and Found,

it's Martine McCutcheon!

MUSIC: Say I'm Not Alone

by Martine McCutcheon

# It was easy when I fell

for you

# It was natural

Knew what I had to do

# It was easy

There was nowhere else to go

# It was easy when I saw your face

# To find my light, to see the way

# It was easy

Oh, like stepping into space

# I started spinning

No way getting home

# What was I thinking?

Into the unknown

# Oh, what am I doing out here?

# Kicking the stars

around the constellation

# Nothing's as wild as my

imagination

# Say I'm not alone

# I can't believe it,

say I'm not alone

# Like I'm waking in

the evening bloom

# Been forsaken in the waiting room

# It's so easy

To leave my other life behind

#

Stumbling alone

# Oh, a new beginning

Lonely getting hold

# What are you thinking?

Into the unknown

# Oh,

what are we doing out here?

# Kicking the stars

around the constellation

# Nothing's as wild

as my imagination

# Say I'm not alone

# I can't believe it,

say I'm not alone

# Laces easy before you touch

# It was easy, didn't know the match

--

# Life is easy before you touch #

It was easy, didn't know the

# Kicking the stars

around the constellation

# Nothing's as wild as my

imagination

# Say I'm not alone

# Say I'm not alone

# Say I'm not alone

# I can't believe it,

say I'm not alone

APPLAUSE