Find out what's happening in Strictly Come Dancing 2009
News
Three couples dance in tonight's semi-final, all hoping that they can impress the judges - and the audience - enough to make it through to the final. Each will tackle an Argentine Tango, and returning to their favourite dance of the competition. With the stakes this high, will they beat last weeks' record scores?
Lisa and Brendan stepped up first to dance their Argentine Tango to Infiltrado by Bajofondo. The pair had been training hard on this dance, which was new to both of them.
Len was impressed: "I loved the swivels, I loved the kicks. I thought the whole thing had an intensity. It was great dancing and I absolutely loved it."
Bruno agreed: "Lisa's legs reached to the outer limits! Absolutely on the money performance wise, the figures were superb." But he added, "Some of the small intricate footwork you were not quite precise as it could have been."
Craig said: "I liked the spiky nature of it and the passion that was in there. I thought the performance and the choreography was excellent."
Arlene commented: "Those legs were made for wrapping! But the important thing is that you glide and caress the floor, and some of that was missing. But for a new dance, well done."
Score: Craig 8, Arlene 8, Len 10, Bruno 9. Total 35.
Next to dance were Tom and Camilla, performing a Jive to Abba's Waterloo. Tom was still reeling from Austin's exit last week, and didn't want to be following suit himself.
Craig said: "He did have more energy in flicks and kicks, and improved sharpness, but started to get a little bit lazy towards the end." He added, "I wasn't thrilled by the routine itself... it didn't show you off to your full potential."
Arlene agreed: "In terms of energy, it was more exciting than the 50 percent off sale at Woolies. You went for it. But the jive should be like a heartbeat that never ever stops, and sometimes your heartbeat was slowing down and you lost the rhythm."
Len felt that: "It had fun, it had energy. I loved some of the choreography. Occasionally your feet sickled in on some of the kicks, but overall it was brilliant."
Bruno said: "Towards the end of the routine it got a bit loose. It cannot happen at this stage."
Score: Craig 8, Arlene 8, Len 9, Bruno 8. Total 33.
Then Rachel and Vincent danced the Argentine Tango to When Doves Cry by Prince. After last weeks' stunning Tango, expectations were running high, and the couple didn't disappoint.
Arlene said: "This dance is about longing and yearning. You connected, and the yearning and burning was so hot, it was burning a hole in the floor."
Len thought: "A technical tour-de-force. So precise. It could have done with a little bit more of a dramatic edge."
Bruno enthused: "It was incredible, at moments you seemed to morph into a sensual being with four legs. Talk about caressing the floor, your feet were kissing the floor. The sequences were so difficult, and executed with such finesse and ease, it was superb.
Craig mused: "What is difficult about this dance is maintaining that connection and stillness of body, while the downstairs is going mad. And you did that absolutely brilliantly.
Score: Craig 9, Arlene 10, Len 10, Bruno 10. Total 39.
Returning to the floor, Lisa and Brendan performed their second dance, a Quickstep to Dancing in the Dark. Last time Lisa did this dance, she made mistakes that cost her marks. The judges' comments showed she put them right this time.
Len said: "Not only did it have body contact, you retained the movement, you have produced two fantastic dances."
Bruno enthused: "You moved around the dancefloor with the radiance and the light of a shooting star."
Craig agreed. "My only complaint last time was the gapping. This time, you were velcroed together."
Arlene praised the performance too: "You mastered the Quickstep, and I have just one thing to say to you. You've come a long way, baby!"
Score: Craig 10, Arlene 10, Len 10, Bruno 10. Total 40. Overall total 75.
Tom and Camilla then danced their Argentine Tango to Por Una Cabeza by The Tango Project. Over all the series of Strictly, Camilla has never been in a final. Would this dance give her the chance she's been waiting for?
Bruno described the performance as: "A brief encounter in a dark alley, looking for that elusive moment of passion. Well played Tom, you went for performance, and you got it right."
Craig said: "For me it was a matter of style over substance. But I loved the routine. You portrayed that character very very well. And it was controlled and very believable.
Arlene agreed: "There was a lot of story, not a lot of steps and figures. But those you did, you were absolutely right."
Len added: "The acting was great. It could have done with a little bit more of intricacy in the feet and so on."
Score: Craig 8, Arlene 8, Len 9, Bruno 9. Total 34. Overall total 67.
Finally, Rachel and Vincent danced an American Smooth to Mandy by Barry Manilow. Rachel has confessed to being desperate to make it into the final, and a good performance here could seal it for her.
Arlene had high praise: "If ever there's a return to Hollywood movies, Rachel is our Ginger Rogers."
Len said: "As a performance, I liked it very much. And I liked the lifts. But it was just wandering around the floor and doing a few steps."
Bruno felt: "For me it had the quality of the most beautiful dreams... you've always been a great dancer, and you'll be a great performer too."
Craig added: "It was gorgeous, and I loved it."
Score: Craig 9, Arlene 9, Len 8, Bruno 10. Total 36. Overall total 75.
So Tom and Camilla are the lowest-rated couple, with eight points separating them from frontrunners Lisa and Brendan and Rachel and Vincent. But who will be dancing again tonight?
Remember, the results show is live later this evening, so tune in at 8.55pm to see who'll be going through to the final round of Strictly Come Dancing.
Get to know out celebrity dancers and their partners.
Learn and new dance and find a class in your area.
91Èȱ¬ © 2014 The 91Èȱ¬ is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.
This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.