We’ve reached the semi final of Strictly Come Dancing 2023 – and this week it’s double the dances as our four remaining contestants and their professional partners take on two routines each!
After Nigel Harman and his partner Katya Jones withdrew last week due to injury, the other contestants’ scores were carried over and combined with this week’s points. That means it’s very much all still to play for – but with just three places in next week’s Grand Final, sadly someone is going to miss out.
Once again presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman soothed our contestants’ nerves and took us through all the dancefloor action, whilst judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Anton Du Beke and head judge Shirley Ballas shared their views on every move.
So who made it into our top five performances this week? Read on to find out…
1: Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin – Rumba to ‘Lift Me Up’ by Rihanna
This Rumba really showed off a different side to Layton. It had a very soft, gentle quality about it and I was also very impressed with how well he flowed through each position in the dance. He had great control in his foot placement as well as some nice lines in his arms and legs, and I thought his partnering work with Nikita was beautiful. Lastly, his acting ability shone throughout and that final back bend was just stunning.
2: Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola – Cha Cha to ‘Mambo Italiano’ by Bette Midler
A week 11 Cha Cha is no mean feat and Ellie absolutely delivered once again. She had good hip action throughout and nice straight legs, sharp arm movement and bags of personality, oozing confidence and sass. I also thought she did very well in the solo section of the dance and handled the tricks well too.
3: Bobby Brazier and Dianne Buswell – Paso Doble to ‘Run Boy Run’ by Woodkid
It was tough to choose between Bobby’s two routines as I also loved his speedy, bright, playful Quickstep, but this Paso just edged it for me. Full of drama, with great control in his arms, sharp movements and fantastic shaping in hold, he showed that his timing and synchronisation with Dianne has come on leaps and bounds and he’s grown in confidence as a leading man. I was also impressed with how light he was on his feet as he drove across the floor and his cape work and knee walks were very good too.
4: Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin – Charleston to ‘Fit As A Fiddle’ by Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor
This routine absolutely played to Layton’s strengths – it could have come straight from a West End musical. Packing serious high energy and stamina from start to finish, the synchronisation between him and Nikita was absolutely fantastic, he handled the umbrella and chair sections effortlessly – as well as some incredible lifts – and had great humour and musicality throughout as well. I was seriously impressed with the speed of the performance and how much they packed in, as well as his humour and acting throughout, and he got yet another perfect score for his efforts!
5: Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola – Couple’s Choice to Dua Lipa Medley
What a way to close the show! I loved the drama and passion of this routine, particularly the controlled, dynamic opening section, and thought Ellie coped with the prop work really well too. Her synchronisation with Vito was excellent as always and she had so much confidence and swagger, as well as being light on her feet throughout. It was yet another strong performance from her and should see her safely through to the final.
The leaderboard for the evening was:
Layton and Nikita – 116 (40, 36, 40)
Ellie and Vito – 111 (36, 37, 38)
Bobby and Dianne – 107 (34, 38, 35)
Annabel and Johannes – 98 (33, 32, 33)
Strictly Come Dancing: The Results is live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 7.20 PM tonight (Sunday 10th December).
