The Strictly live shows kicked off last night (September 23) – and so did the comments on the Twitter hashtag, with Nigel Harman and Layton Williams‘ previous dance experience becoming a burning topic of conversation.
Former EastEnders star Nigel performed a sizzling paso doble with partner Katya Jones. Layton, meanwhile, did a cracking samba with his partner Nikita Kuzmin.
Nigel topped the leaderboard with an impressive 32 points, while Layton was joint second with 29 points. However, there was a stark difference between how the judges addressed Layton’s musical theatre past and Nigel’s – and the viewers at home, on the whole, also brushed over the Casualty star’s West End history.
Strictly 2023: Nigel and Layton impress the judges
Both dances were amazing and got a raft of well-deserved comments from the judges.
Anton Du Beke made a direct reference to Layton’s dance experience, defending the musical theatre star. During his critique, he said: “I know you have previous dance experience but that’s very different from what we do here especially when you’re tackling a dance like samba with an enormously difficult technique.”
Nigel’s dance experience wasn’t mentioned at all by the judges, though. After leaving EastEnders, he headed to the stage, appearing in shows such as Guys and Dolls. He also revealed that, aged 16, he did a dance diploma, then went to work as a dancer on the cruise ships. Layton, meanwhile, has appeared in the likes of Billy Elliot and Everyone’s Talking About Jamie.
Viewers react
Taking to Twitter, many Strictly viewers commented on Layton’s previous experience, noting that they think he has an “unfair advantage”.
One said: “Layton has an unfair advantage. Got dance experience and is used to performing in front of a live audience. He has the knowledge, the basics, the flexibility and the major advantage of being used to performing in front of a live audience every night. To have that sort of dance knowledge is a major advantage.”
Not everyone felt the same, though. One hit back in defence of the star: “Would presenters have an unfair advantage because they work in front of live audiences, athletes??? And like Anton said, the styles are very different.”
Another then chipped in to ask why Nigel’s dance past was being overlooked. They commented: “You know Nigel Harman has been in multiple musicals right, yet you’re tweeting how amazing he is without claiming he has an unfair advantage.”
Another agreed and added: “I’ve seen Nigel Harman perform in musical theatre more often than Layton. And the contestant I’ve seen dance on stage most recently was Les Dennis in 42nd Street!”
Read more: Angela Rippon divides Strictly viewers amid claims she was ‘massively overmarked’
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