The official BBC Strictly Come Dancing Instagram page has revealed the dances the 15 celebrities and their pro partners will be performing this weekend.
But in amongst Ugo Monye’s quickstep and Tilly Ramsay’s Charleston sits a very odd choice for week two.
Greg Wise and his professional partner Karen Hauer are set to perform a couple’s choice routine to If You Could Read My Mind by Ultra Nate, Amber and Jocelyn Enriquez.
If you could read my mind Greg you’d have given that a hard no.
How the hell is he meant to give a solid 10 out of 10 performance in a dance that’s not dissimilar to the finale’s showdance in week two?!
When did BBC Strictly introduce the couple’s choice?
The couple’s choice was first introduced on the show in 2018.
Back in the day, the couple’s choice routine didn’t see the light of day till at least week five, when even the less natural dancers had some experience under their belts.
Read more: James Jordan delivers his verdict on the celebs’ week one Strictly routines
Yet, even then, those who performed it early on didn’t exactly set the judging panel alight.
Take Nicola Adams and Katya Jones, for example, who also performed their couple’s choice in week two.
Nicola was a more than capable dancer.
But even she didn’t fare too well with the couple’s choice. Their dance got the joint second lowest score ever since the discipline was introduced.
In week three last year Caroline Quentin and Johannes Radebe scored just 21 – the lowest couple’s choice score ever.
Poor Greg could be forgiven for thinking they’re trying to set him up for a fall.
Give Greg a break – couple’s choice in week two is too much
So this week Greg either has to master contemporary, street/commercial or theatre/jazz.
Given that the earliest a 40 has been given for a couple’s choice was week six last year with HRVY and Janette Manrara, Greg could be in trouble.
Bookies put him as a 66/1 outsider to win after last week’s show. So what will this week bring?
Read more: Bookies reveal their favourite to win Strictly Come Dancing 2021
I guess the only thing that could help him avert disaster if it all goes a bit Pete Tong is the fact he’s currently sitting in fifth place on the leaderboard ahead of the second live show…
And I don’t know about you, but I’m definitely not prepared for tears from Emma Thompson and her lookalike daughter in the audience!
Surely the couple’s choice is all about showcasing what you’ve learnt during your time on the show and showing it off in a new discipline.
Ballroom and Latin sits at the heart of Strictly Come Dancing. So why aren’t the bosses letting our celebs master those first before throwing in the new disciplines?
How will BBC Strictly veteran Karen feel about the dance?
She’ll doubtless be upbeat when talking about it on It Takes Two and the VT.
But I can’t help but think it doesn’t exactly give her much scope to showcase her choreography skills and imprint her teaching style on Greg because they’re introducing it so early on.
Specialist choreographers usually come in for couple’s choice. They work with the pro to design the routine.
Karen’s only had one week left to her own devices and already she’s getting “help” choreographing the routines?
I’d be a bit offended if I was in her position.
A body language expert last week listed Greg and Karen as one couple yet to properly gel.
So surely introducing someone else into their partnership is unlikely to help…
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What’s everyone else dancing this week on Strictly?
AJ and Kai have the foxtrot, Judi and Graziano have the samba, Katie and Gorka dance the jive, while Nina and Neil have the tango.
Elsewhere, Rose and Giovanni dance the salsa, Sara and Aljaz take on the foxtrot, Tilly and Nikita perform a Charleston and Adam and Katya take on the quickstep.
Dan and Nadiya have the paso doble, John and Johannes and Rhys and Nancy dance the cha cha, Robert and Dianne dance the tango and Ugo and Oti try their hand at the quickstep.
There are far more competent dancers than Greg who’d have been better qualified to take on a more contemporary couple’s choice routine.
Give it to AJ, then we’d see a routine!
I sincerely hope he proves me wrong, but all signs – for me at least – are pointing to a dance-off spot for Greg come Sunday night.
And his survival in the show will depend entirely on who he’s up against.
Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday (October 3) on BBC One at 6.45pm. The results show on Sunday starts at 7.05pm.
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