BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2008 - Week 11, Christine Dances out

The Public alas failed to save her from the bottom two and after performing two dances and the subsequent dance off, Christine becomes the 11th person to be voted out of Strictly Come Dancing.

The One Show Presenter landed in the bottom two against the impressive Rachel Stevens, who had already scored a maximum. With Lisa Snowdon finishing top of the Leaderboard, Christine must have known that the end was inevitable.



Rachel danced brilliantly once again in the dance-off to survive to the last 4 and Semi-finals. This is the Second time Rachel Stevens has landed in the bottom two despite brilliant scores. It may show that she does not have much Public voting support. This could be crucial if she makes the final.



Christine Bleakley's happy personality will be missed from the show, but it was the right decision for her to go. The Judges votes were unanimous in keeping Rachel in.

There are just four people left in who can win now. They are Austin Healey, Tom Chmabers, Rachel Stevens and Lisa Snowdon. Austin is still the favourite to win, but this year it looks very close and unpredictable to call. If Lisa Snowdon takes it from where she started in Week 1, it would be an amazing achievement.

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X Factor 2008 - Week 8, Who is going out now?

Ruth Lorenzo is the Evan money favourite to go out this week. It is certainly not a bet I will be placing.

If she finds herself in the bottom two sing off against JLS, I think she could blow them away with her power. The only way perhaps JLS could survive in this situation is if the Judges took it to deadlock with the decision resting solely on the Public Vote. JLS are seemingly more popular than Ruth.

Here are the full current odds on each acts chances of being voted out the X Factor this week.

Ruth Lorenzo 1/1
J L S 15/8
Alexandra Burke 5/1
Eoghan Quigg 12/1
Diana Vickers 14/1

The Market looks as if its shaping up to price a final of Diana Vickers verses Eoghan Quigg. There are still a few fences to be jumped yet, and anyone can take a tumble before the final run in.

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BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2008 - Week 10, John Sergeant out with Dignity intact

Who will ever know exactly what went on behind the scenes this week on Strictly Come Dancing? Not me, that's for sure.

Anyway, its seems like John Sergeant has done the right thing by opting to pull out of the competition. He will retire undefeated with his popularity as high as it can perhaps possibly go and his dignity firmly intact. This week he performed a farewell dance with dance partner, Kristina Rihanoff.

It was Kristina's first foray into the world of Strictly and she did a fantastic job with John.



John Sergeant was a breath of fresh air for Strictly Come Dancing and will be one of the most remembered celebrities that the show has ever had. He did the right thing to retire the show. It had got to a point where News reporters were camped in his front garden each day and he was making headline news just for being in a dance contest. When he pulled out, he even had to call a Press Conference. John was fully aware that the whole situation was getting well out of control and he had to put a stop to it.

Respect to John on this tricky but correct decision.

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X Factor 2008 - Week 7, Rachel Hylton goes out

X Factor 2008, Week 7, Rachel Hylton was the odds-on favourite to go out and that's exactly what happened. A fantastic raw talent, but she never really gained a great deal of popularity with the British voting public. She has the power, determination and talent to match any of the contestants out there, but just didn't have enough general appeal.

After the Public votes were totalled up, Rachel found herself in the bottom two sing-off with Louis' Boyband, JLS.

A very impressive powerhouse display from Rachel, but this was her third time in the sing-off which I think was her eventual undoing. Lets face it, in terms of record and Album sales, JLS are hugely more commercially viable. Simon Cowell struggled with the final decision on who to send home, but eventually he had to be a realist. It was goodbye to Rachel.

Hopefully this is not the end for Rachel Hylton, but in this ruthless cut throat entertainment industry, it very well could be. I hope I'm wrong.

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BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2008 - Week 10, Who is going out next?... tricky

With John Sergeant finally doing the decent thing and pulling out of Strictly Come Dancing, it has really thrown the competition wide open. Entertaining as he was, there was a serious threat developing of John actually winning the whole show! This would have been rather silly, but quite amusing none the less.

At a Press Conference,John said, "It was always my intention to have fun on the show and I was hoping to stay in as long as possible. The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far. I would like to thank Kristina and all those viewers who have been rooting for me through the series."

Respect to Mr Sergeant. I think it was the was the right decision, made at the right time. Apparently anybody that voted for him this week, will get a refund. Oh well, you can't say fairer than that I suppose. It will be strange without him there this week... it will be a bit like watching a dancing competition.

Here is now how the market looks on who will be eliminated next,

Jodie Kidd 10/11
Christine Bleakley 5/2
Lisa Snowdon 7/2
Rachel Stevens 10/1
Tom Chambers 20/1
Austin Healey 33/1

Jodie Kidd is odds on to go, but I don't think it is as cut and dry as that. The competition is extremely close and now, without John Sergeant getting the majority of viewers votes, any one can end up in the bottom two dance off. With John gone, the voting public may adopt a new hero and that could very well be Jodie Kidd.

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BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2008 - Week 9, Can John Do it Again ?

John Sergeant danced the American Smooth this week on Strictly Come Dancing. Although, he did show some improvement over previous shambles, John predictably finished bottom again after the Judges scores.

Not embarrassing this week, Mr Sergeant scored a credible 25 points.

But... Can John defy the odds once again and survive yet another week?

Well, it's certainly possible. Very impossible in fact. If he were to finish top of the Viewers votes, this will average him to finish mid-table and free of the bottom two placings and the subsequent dance off. I think this is very likely to happen.

As John Sergeant himself puts it. Himself and professional dance partner Kristina Rihanhoff are a team... she does the dancing, he does the jokes.



In just a few hours we will find out the results (in no particular order of course). Tune in to BBC1 this evening. It could be a shock result!

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BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2008 - Week 8, Rachel Stevens 35 points = Bottom Two Dance Off

So... these days in Strictly Come Dancing, 35 points from the Judges can leave you ending up in the bottom two dance off. What a joke this is and not a very funny one.

Professional dance partner, Vincent Simone, choreographed a brilliant American Smooth routine and wouldn't have believed what happened with the voting public. This was Rachel's best performance week so far and she was rewarded with this travesty of events. It appears she must have very little support with the viewers at home which is a bit of a mystery. Has something gone wrong with the vote counting system?

One thinks that maybe it has.

Thankfully Rachel survived the dance off this week, but it was to the detriment of Heather Small, who also danced well. Truth be told, neither of the women should have been there.

Head Judge Len Goodman said of Rachel's original routine, "Diamonds come in small packages and that was a gem of a performance."

Bruno added, "it was Fred and Ginger for me tonight, so elaborate and demanding... you did that effortlessly."

It is perhaps impossible to fathom. Bruno said he felt as if he were in the Twilight Zone. In a week where a score of 35 out of 40 can land you in the bottom two, the dance part of this competition is becoming less and less relevant.

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X Factor 2008 - Week 5, The Next Elimination

God was on Daniel Evans side last week. He somehow managed to survive Disco week despite facing the wrath of the Judges. He was odds on to go out, but escaped the bottom two singoff completely. Louis face when it was announced, in no particular order, that Evans was through, was an absolute picture.

It is Mariah Carey Song week this time. Here are the odds on the next elimination,

Daniel Evans 4/7
Rachel Hylton 7/2
Ruth Lorenzo 6/1
J L S 10/1
Eoghan Quigg 14/1
Alexandra Burke 50/1
Laura White 66/1
Diana Vickers 66/1

Daniel is an even stronger favourite to be voted out this time at 4/7. If he gets another roasting from the Judges however, the public may get behind him and vote again. In recent years this seems to be the general pattern, most famously evident with the Scottish duo, The McDonald Brothers, a few years back.

I would be surprised if Daniel is not in the bottom two though... but yes, I thought that last week also!

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X Factor 2008 - Week 4 - Austin Drage is out !!!

Well, this is certainly a result that not many people could have expected. Austin Drage is out of the X Factor !!!

I thought Daniel Evans would be a dead cert to go out this week, but he didn't even land in the bottom two. His rendition of, "Don't Leave me this way." was enough to see him through. Louis didn't like him and said he was the perfect pub singer. Simon Cowell also described the act as hideous. That damming summing up of course, was enough to get everyone voting at home and Mr Evans proceeds safely to Week 5.

Austin found himself in the bottom two surprisingly with Rachel Hylton. No one could have predicted that these two would have finished here. When the going gets tough, you can always expect Rachel to come out all guns blazing and this is exactly what she did. Austin was the one to go and Simon Cowell loses his second act from the competition. He had Louis now just have one act left.

Rather unfortunate that Austin should go at this stage. He had a good voice and didn't really put a foot wrong. Maybe he didn't fully connect with the viewing public, but as mega band Queen once said, Another one bites the Dust.

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X Factor - Week 3 - Scott Bruton out

Scott Bruton has become the third act to be voted out of X Factor 2008.

This week was Big Band night and it is only when you see acts having to face the bottom two sing-off for survival, you can see how much that this contest really means to them. This competition is tough. Very tough.

Scott's performance of "That's Life" saw him fall into the bottom two against Daniel Evans. Evans gave a very emotional and heart-felt performance of his survival song which was enough to see him go through.

Louis had the final judges vote on the matter and you could tell it was an extremely hard decision for him to make. In a week where the performances have been arguably the strongest ever, it was always going to be tough deciding who would be the one to go.

Simon Cowell said it, in other years, Scotts performance would have been strong enough to go through.

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BBC Strictly Come Dancing - Week 6 - The 6th Elimination ?

Week 6 of the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing contest will see the remaining celebrities perform either the Paso Doble or the Viennese Waltz. It does not always reflect accurately on the Night, but here are the odds on who is favourite to be eliminated this Saturday.

Heather Small 2/1
Mark Foster 9/4
Andrew Castle 7/2
John Sergeant 4/1
Jodie Kidd 10/1
Lisa Snowdon 25/1
Christine Bleakley 25/1
Rachel Stevens 50/1
Cherie Lunghi 66/1
Tom Chambers 100/1
Austin Healey 100/1

You can pretty much draw a pencil line through John Sergeant. The public love him and will vote for him no matter what. Last week, 16 points (an average of 4 per Judge) was enough to see him through.

In the previous round, no celebrity who finished in the bottom three with the Judges, ended up in the bottom two overall. Taking this into account, it looks as if Heather Small may find herself in the dance-off for the third week running. She isn't the worst out there, and I think she can survive again at the detriment to either Mark Foster or Andrew Castle.

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BBC Strictly - Week 5 - Who will be Eliminated ?

Exterminate! Exterminate!

Ok, it isn't quite as bad a dalek execution. Maybe. Now we have got the preliminary weeks out of the way and the men and women finally merge into one single competition, just who will be knocked out next?

If they are anything to go by, here is how the betting market sees it,

Jodie Kidd 3/1
Don Warrington 3/1
Mark Foster 7/2
Heather Small 5/1
Andrew Castle 6/1
John Sergeant 7/1
Lisa Snowdon 20/1
Christine Bleakley 25/1
Cherie Lunghi 50/1
Tom Chambers 66/1
Rachel Stevens 100/1
Austin Healey 100/1

The BBC's Strictly Come Dancing is now into Week 5 of its sixth series. The Market seems to think the bottom two for the dance off this week will be Jodie Kidd and Don Warrington. Hmmmm... I'm not too sure about that.

Don is a bit of unknown quantity. He has two dances behind him, one good, the other poor. If he performs to the standard he did in the Tango, he should escape the dance off quite easily. Ever popular John Sergeant should go through again which leaves Mark Foster, Heather Small and Andrew Castle slightly vulnerable if Don also does well.

Favourite to go out is Jodie Kidd. Tall and stunning on the dance floor, I'm hoping she stays in a little longer as I believe she is capable of a great dance if she remains in the competition long enough.

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BBC Strictly - Week 4 - Jessie Wallace out

Jessie Wallace has become the second female Celebrity to be eliminated out of The BBC's Strictly Come Dancing.

She had finished bottom after the Judges vote, but this time the public failed to save her from facing the Dance-off. Jessie found herself competing against Heather Small for survival and it seemed pretty clear-cut she should go. The Judges agreed, voting unanimously to keep Heather in.

Heather had a bit of a bad week with the Quickstep dance and is sure to improve next week.

The men and women now mix into the same competition and dance directly against each other. This is when the contest starts for real. Celebrities eliminated to date are, Phil Daniels, Gillian Taylforth, Gary Rhodes and Jessie Wallace.

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BBC Strictly - Week 4 - Elimination, Who is Next?

Week 4 in the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing competition will see the lady competitors perform for the second time. Casualties so far are ex Eastenders and The Bill actress Gillian Taylforth, who was partnered by Anton Du Beke. Professional dancer, Anton, will probably never win the competition as he is always partnered by, for want of a better word, duffers. He is the Mr Nice Guy the Producers of the show can palm people off on. Harsh, but probably true.

Ahem, getting back on topic, here are the published odds this week on who is thought most likely to be eliminated in Episode 4 of the contest.

Jodie Kidd 6/4
Jessie Wallace 7/4
Lisa Snowdon 9/2
Heather Small 6/1
Cherie Lunghi 14/1
Christine Bleakley 20/1
Rachel Stevens 33/1

There is quite a gap between the first two and the rest of the pack. Unless anyone else has an unmitigated disaster, I can't see the bottom two being any other than Jessie Wallace and Jodie Kidd.

Jodie was in the dreaded dance-off first time out, but survived at the expense of Gillian Taylforth. Her dance-off performance was a lot better which maybe shows she can improve a bit under pressure. It is looking like Jessie Wallace to go out to me unless she can pull something out of the bag to leave Lisa Snowdon vulnerable.

Cherie Lunghi, Christine Bleakley and Rachel Stevens should be extremely safe to stay in.

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