Making Fletch happen

Week 13: The Final - 14 December 2019

Last year I made one big request of Louise Rainbow's successor: no more 150-minute finals. This year, I guess I got my wish with this comparatively lean 125-minute finale, though I guess that's more the result of Will getting medevaced than any power this blog might have. Nonetheless, I'm going to take it as the gift that it is - even though I'm exhausted and even a two-hour finale feels like it might end me. Merry Christmas, everyone!

This week on It Takes Two, we have learnt...

Monday

- Natalie Lowe had her baby at the weekend! Congratulations Natalie.

- Darren and Lilia think this series has been unpredictable.
- Darren thinks Dev and Catherine were potential finalists (also Michelle but that seems more legit).

- Darren's favourite couple was Will and Janette, Lilia's were Dev and Dianne and Michelle and Giovanni.
- Darren thinks the reason Karim is struggling with lifts is being shorter than Amy.
- Lilia thought Emma and Anton's waltz was great... before massively ragging on the footwork.
- Darren wants Emma and Anton to win, and Lilia wants Kelvin, or all of them.

- The last comedian to make it to the final was Julian Clary.
- Apparently Gorka and Katya had a whole storyline worked out for their dance to Niall Horan.  Something about her being hard to get even though she was cartwheeling with her foof wide open.

- Varieties of tap vary from jazz to postmodern. I have no idea what postmodern tap looks like and I'm not sure I want to.

Nightmare on Ramsey Street

Week 12: Top 4 Results (Semi-Final) - 8 October 2019

We’re straight into the credits with no final ‘final please’ pleas. Then we open with an Argentine-tango-cum-flamenco-cum-paso-cum-circus pro dance featuring some random centre stage [!!!! That's Carlos Acosta! - Steve] whilst Luba, Dianne, Nancy, Nadiya, Janette and another random make sexy faces at him, whilst Gorka, Graziano and Katya tempt him from the sidelines. Then he pirouettes around the place like Karim on steroids, then he does acrobatics with Katya who is wearing the worst outfit ever seen on this show that wasn’t inflicted on Michelle Visage or Tess Daly – some red trousers and top combo that looks like those crepe paper Christmas trees you made in school. Also it featured too much sitting around on the floor. I did not like it. Apart from the bit where all the pros made fierce power shapes for their end poses glaring daggers at Katya and random ballet bloke.

Same old story

Week 12: Top 4 Perform (Semi-Final) - 7 December 2019

Last week! A perfectly respectable musicals week that Steve got to recap following a perfectly respectful Blackpool week, whilst I got the utter doggerel that was Blackpool Hangover week, i.e. one of the worst episodes of this show ever. And now! It's two-dance week! That week where everyone inevitably underwhelms due to the pressure of learning two new routines! When I complained to Steve about this, he did point out that he has the final, which means SHOWDANCES from this shower. I think I am most excited-for-but-also-dreading Karim and Amy's, given how much their dances are when they're meant to be sticking to genre. Imagine when they're let loose. I'm not sure there will even be any survivors. But before that, of course, we have to see which three couples will make the final, and which will get to have a nice sit down and watch three-dance-week from the sidelines.

This week on It Takes Two, we have learnt...

Monday

- Alex has learnt what whisks, voltas and botafogos are.

- Alex expected to be in the dance-off every week.

- Michelle took Alex out for dinner last night to cheer her up.

- Johannes has a nice singing voice.

- Johannes really loves the samba.

Scott free

Week 11: Top 5 Results (Musicals Week) - 1 December 2019

We open with the excellent Beverley Knight MBE singing 'Memory' from Cats. I had the pleasure of seeing her in Memphis: The Musical a few years back and she really was dynamite in it. (Matt Cardle, who was her co-star, not so much.) The pros are waltzing all around her, with Aljaž and Katya getting the showcase spot and doing a sublime and ridiculous spinning lift which I enjoy very much. It's all very soft and subtle and lovely, which is quite a nice change of pace after the full on jazz-handsiness of pretty much everything that was performed last night. See you next year, Beverley!

Show and tell

Week 11: Top 5 Perform (Musicals Week) - 30 November 2019

Ever have that moment where you can't quite believe you're watching something that was broadcast on a major channel in 2019? I'm having that right now with this opening VT, which features an indifferently-drawn proscenium arch and curtains on which silhouettes of the contestants are superimposed as they talk about Musicals Week. I'm not sure it's an idea that you could ever execute in a prestige TV way to begin with, but the effect here is undeniably CBeebies. Who signed this off? Anyway, if you want to know what's being said: Chris is the one who gets the short straw and has to tell us what week it is, Emma wants to deliver the best performance of her life, Karim says that being part of the final five on Strictly is the best feeling ever, Alex can't believe she's made it this far and she's not taking any moment of it for granted, and Kelvin promises that his performance will be bigger, better and more memorable than ever before. And just in case anyone was having trouble identifying who was saying what, the silhouettes fade into the actual people as we get one more round of soundbites: Karim has to give it his all when the curtain comes up, Chris is ready to give an awesome performance and have a brilliant time doing it, Emma can't even say how she would feel to make it through to the semis, it would mean the world to Kelvin, Alex has been training so hard and would love to make it to the semis. Then the curtain closes, and I hope we can put this entire sorry incident behind us and never speak of it again.