Strictly fans argue one particular dance has no place in final
"Doesn't seem fair if they aren't all doing them."
What did you miss?
Strictly Come Dancing viewers harboured one niggly complaint as Saturday, 14 December's grand final aired live on BBC One.
Tasked with producing three Glitterball trophy-worthy routines, Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell, Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec, Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola, and JB Gill and Lauren Oakley confirmed their dance and song combinations earlier in the week, with the judging panel collectively picking their opening numbers.
McCausland, Buswell, Ghouri and Škorjanec were handed the Couple's Choice to begin with, but this didn't sit right with many social media users.
What, how and why?
Couple's Choice allows the dancing pair to dance in whatever style they like, so they are not bound by the conventions of the traditional ballroom and latin dance styles. It was first introduced to Strictly in 2018 where the couples were restricted to a choice between contemporary, theatre/jazz or street/commercial, but in 2021 it was changed to being a freestyle dance, and not restricted to any specific style of dancing.
The Couple's Choice option allows the dancers to select a style that complements the celebrity's strengths.
"Not sure couples choice should be allowed in the final," tweeted one Strictly viewer, as a second person also argued: "Couples choice shouldn't be being done on the final when you're doing a show dance later on."
A third one went on to suggest: "I know they'll never do it but I actually think couples choice would really work as just a themed week."
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McCausland and Buswell re-performed their glorious Week 8 dance to John Lennon's Instant Karma (We All Shine On), while Love Island's Ghouri and her Slovenian partner spellbound the audience once again to P!nk's What About Us.
Why are they allowing couples choice in the final. Seems unfair to me. It's not a proper dance style. #Strictly
— Paulo (@CaptMagenta) December 14, 2024
if you’re doing a couples choice in the final then you shouldn’t be allowed to win btw #Strictly
— luke (@fansvfavourites) December 14, 2024
the judges picking couples choice is crazy, if it’s the couples favourite dance then fair enough but the judges pick should be latin/ballroom #Strictly
— beth (@bethhhh2000) December 14, 2024
Ooooo! Should we be allowing couples to do their couple’s choice again in the final? Doesn’t seem fair if they aren’t all doing them 🤔#StrictlyComeDancing #strictly #StrictlyFinal
— KP (@TeacherBusy) December 14, 2024
I've always said a Couples Choice should never be a judges choice because it's a similar rule for the show dance.
Chris & Tasha should've had one Latin & one ballroom dance each to make it fair. #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing pic.twitter.com/CWaAEKIGaF— Ryan Glendenning (@RyanTheSoapking) December 14, 2024
What else happened in the Strictly final?
Meanwhile, beloved pro Amy Dowden returned to the ballroom to support her ex-celebrity partner JB Gill and replacement Lauren Oakley whilst also taking part in the opening spectacle.
Invited by co-host Claudia Winkleman to share her love for the pair, the star said: "I'm so proud! Your kindness, your talent has shone through every single week and thank you Lauren, honestly, I'm so proud of you," before engaging in a three-way cuddle.
Strictly Come Dancing will return to BBC One next year.
