HomeTVStrictly Come Dancing 2013 week 1 show 2 recap

Strictly Come Dancing 2013 week 1 show 2 recap

On Friday night six of this yearā€™s batch of celebrities took to the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom for their first dance of the series.

As has become tradition with the show, it is now split into two live shows on the opening week giving us fans two instalments of ballroom action. Last night the remaining 9 couples danced giving us a feel of who to keep an eye on and who is in danger of early elimination.

The show opened with a bang as the Strictly professionals did an incredible group routine to Rihannaā€™s Donā€™t Stop The Music which was choreographed by Jason Gilkison.

The first to dance was former rugby star Ben Cohen and his partner Kristina Rihanoff. Ben revealed that heā€™s hoping to learn how to dance and talked about having bad hearing which has caused him some problems in training. Could he pull it out of the bag with his routine and do a perfect Cha Cha?

Len kicked off the comments for the evening and said Benā€™s footwork was terrific but said he noticed that his nerves made him speed up and lose his timing. Bruno called Ben a ā€˜beefy beastā€™ and offered his help to train Ben. He said the routine started well but told Ben he needed to loosen up a bit and feel the music. Craig said he has seen ā€˜breeze blocks with more movementā€™ with nothing positive to add. Darcey told Ben to use his hips and waist more during his performance.

Ben and Kristina scored 19 out of 40 from the judges.

Former Bond girl Fiona Fullerton was the next to dance and she surely hoped the judges would be kinder on her than they were to Ben. Partnered with Anton Du Beke, Fiona said that being on Strictly has taken her back to her former career as an actress. Anton joked that he may actually dance in December, making fun of the past few years where he hasnā€™t got too far in the competition. For their first routine of the series Fiona and Anton danced the Tango.

Bruno said he liked the role play of the routine but said Fiona got her feet muddled at times despite a good start. Craig said it was lovely to actually see Anton dancing this series and agree with Bruno that the routine was a bit messy. Darcey said she was impressed with the amount of content in the routine but told Fiona to work on her top line. Len agreed with Darcey that the content was amazing and called Fiona ā€˜sharp as a lemon tartā€™.

Fiona and Anton scored 24 out of 40 from the judges.

Hairy Biker Dave Myers was the third celebrity to dance. Talking in his VT he said he was delighted with his Strictly makeover and happy with having Karen Hauer as his teacher. The training footage showed that perhaps Dave isnā€™t taking his performance very seriously and he is very amused to be told to act more like Mick Jagger. Could he hold it together for his Cha Cha?

The audience gave Dave a standing ovation but would the judges share their enthusiasm? Craig simply said ā€˜terrifyingā€™ before going on to say he didnā€™t like the hip movements and gyrating. Darcey said she wanted to ā€˜cry with happinessā€™ and told Dave to be careful with his enthusiasm which made him lose control. Len said Dave had ā€˜more stagger than Jaggerā€™ and told him he was entertaining. Bruno said it was a hilarious, insane mess and asked him not to gyrate in his direction.

Dave and Karen scored 16 out of 40 from the judges.

Anyone who had to follow Dave had a lot to live up to and that honour went to Countdownā€™s Rachel Riley. In her VT she admitted she used to be a tomboy and wasnā€™t really into dressing up. Pasha revealed that Rachel had never danced before so does she have natural rhythm? During training Pasha told Rachel she needed to be more ladylike to pull off the Waltz. Did she manage it?

Darcey said that all the elements of a good waltz were there but gave a few constructive comments to help improve her technique. Len said the dance was a bit on the ā€˜carefulā€™ side and told her to give it more welly. Bruno said Rachel had all the elements and told her to extend her lines. Craig said the routine had ā€˜a beautiful flowā€™ and was full of ā€˜eleganceā€™.

Rachel and Pasha scored 27 out of 40 from the judges.

Fashion designer Julien Macdonald was the next to dance. Partnered with new professional Janette Manrara, Julien said he hoped he could dance as well as his partner. Janette revealed that Julien was struggling to concentrate on his routine as he had a fashion show to put on. Julien said his tactic was to dazzle with lots of sparkles during his Cha Cha.

Len said it was more like ā€˜Womenā€™s Weeklyā€™ than ā€˜Vogueā€™ and told Julien he needs to straighten his legs. Bruno said that Julien canā€™t be bent all the time saying itā€™s sometimes good to play it straight. Craig said that ā€˜Madonna has nothing to worry aboutā€™ after seeing Julienā€™s performance. Darcey said she loved the joy in Julienā€™s face and said he clearly wasnā€™t scared by his first performance.

Julien and Janette scored 20 out of 40 from the judges.

Dragonā€™s Den star Deborah Meaden took to the floor next with her partner Robin Windsor. The business woman said sheā€™s never looked and felt like she has since joining Strictly. Robin said he knows that Deborah is going to be very competitive. Deborahā€™s determination was clear in the training video but has she done enough to pull off a Tango?

Bruno said it was ā€˜a good pitch from the Dragonā€™ but said she messed it up in the middle. Craig said that Deborah was lagging behind Robin during the routine but admitted he was surprised. Darcey said Deborah had great attitude and attack before saying she was very impressed. Len said he enjoyed the routine but told Deborah to lift her diaphragm more.

Deborah and Robin scored 24 out of 40 from the judges.

Following Deborah onto the floor was Casualty star Patrick Robinson with his partner Anya Garnis. In his VT Patrick said heā€™s a shy person and will struggle to be himself on TV. Anya said she felt a connection with Patrick right away and was delighted to be dancing with him. In training Patrickā€™s knee injury was causing him a lot of trouble. Could he take the pain to do the Jive?

Craig said the rhythm and energy was fantastic but told him to sort out his flat feet. Darcey said the Jive is a hard dance and told him to watch his flappy feet before admitting she liked the routine. Len said he made up for poor technique in places with enthusiasm. Bruno said it was a ā€˜great debutā€™ but agreed with the other judges about technique.

Patrick and Anya scored 28 out of 40 from the judges.

TV presenter Vanessa Feltz stepped into the spotlight for her Strictly debut. In her VT she said she was doing the show for all the grannies out there and said she was very happy with having James as her partner. During training Vanessa was getting frustrated with her routine but sheā€™s determined to get it right. How did she do with the Cha Cha?

Darcey said that the dance didnā€™t suit Vanessa and told her that she thinks ballroom is more her style. Len said it was ā€˜cool, calm and collectedā€™ and said she did a good job getting all the steps right. Bruno said the performance was too restrained and he wants to see the real Vanessa breakthrough. Craig said there was too much acting and not enough dancing.

Vanessa and James scored 19 out of 40 from the judges.

The last celebrity to dance was model/WAG Abbey Clancy who is dancing with Aljaz Skorjanec. In her VT Abbey admitted she didnā€™t know if she had what it takes. In her training video Abbey said she felt like ā€˜a sack of spudsā€™ and had trouble telling her left from her right. Did she manage to remember during her Waltz?

Len said the Waltz is a big dance and told Abbey sheā€™d done the dance of the night. Bruno called it ā€˜dreamyā€™ and ā€˜romanticā€™ telling Abbey she did ā€˜an incredible debutā€™. Craig said he had a hunch about Abbey and Aljaz calling them ā€˜gorgeousā€™. Darcey said it was ā€˜really lovelyā€™ and congratulated her.

Abbey and Aljaz scored 32 out of 40 from the judges.

The leaderboard for Saturdayā€™s show was:

Abbey Clancy & Aljaz Skorjanec ā€“ 32
Patrick Robinson & Anya Garnis ā€“ 28
Rachel Riley & Pasha Kovalev ā€“ 27
Deborah Meaden & Robin Windsor ā€“ 24
Fiona Fullerton & Anton Du Beke ā€“ 24
Julien Macdonald & Janette Manrara ā€“ 20
Ben Cohen & Kristina Rihanoff ā€“ 19
Vanessa Feltz & James Jordan ā€“ 19
Dave Myers & Karen Hauer ā€“ 16

The full leaderboard for the weekend is:

Abbey Clancy & Aljaz Skorjanec ā€“ 32
Natalie Gumede & Artem Chigvintsev ā€“ 31
Patrick Robinson & Anya Garnis ā€“ 28
Sophie Ellis-Bextor & Brendan Cole ā€“ 28
Susanna Reid & Kevin Clifton ā€“ 28
Rachel Riley & Pasha Kovalev ā€“ 27
Ashley Taylor Dawson & Ola Jordan ā€“ 25
Deborah Meaden & Robin Windsor ā€“ 24
Fiona Fullerton & Anton Du Beke ā€“ 24
Mark Benton & Iveta Lukosiute ā€“ 24
Julien Macdonald & Janette Manrara ā€“ 20
Ben Cohen & Kristina Rihanoff ā€“ 19
Vanessa Feltz & James Jordan ā€“ 19
Dave Myers & Karen Hauer ā€“ 16
Tony Jacklin & Aliona Vilani ā€“ 16

Strictly Come Dancing continues next Saturday at 6.20pm on BBC One and BBC One HD.

Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip is the owner and Editor of Entertainment Focus, and the Managing Director of PiƱata Media. With over 19 years of journalism experience, Pip has interviewed some of the biggest stars in the entertainment world. He is also a qualified digital marketing expert with over 20 years of experience.

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