Strictly Come Dancing Memories

Strictly Come Dancing isn't just about the frocks and the dance moves. There's a lot more that goes on behind the scenes, as dancing partners fall out, fall over, or sometimes even fall in love. We look back at some highlights over the years.

 

Romance

 

Series Two had its fair share of gossip when athlete Denise Lewis was said to be having a fling with her partner Ian Waite - and not just around the dancefloor. The following year Camilla Dallerup and her celebrity chef partner James Martin were rumoured to be cooking up a little romance. In 2006, all the talk was of Coronation Street hunk Ray Fearon and leggy model Elle MacPherson. In 2007, tongues were wagging about ex EastEnder Matt Di'Angelo and Flavia Cacace. Who knows what fun and games are in store during 2008's run.

 

Quality moves

 

With the studio lights burning down and sequins and cummerbunds digging in, it's not easy to remember your dance moves - and that's before you start thinking about the millions of viewers glued to their screens. But most of the celebrities have taken to ballroom with aplomb. Natasha and Brendan delivered a Paso Doble that any professional pair would have been proud of in the first series of the show. But by that point they'd already left the other competitors far behind.

 

In series two, it was Jill Halfpenny's turn to shine. She and partner Darren Bennett nailed their jive and went on to win the series. Zoe Ball and Ian Waite may have wowed the judges with their tango in the third series, but they weren't a hit with the viewers and finished third overall. And it was the fruity little tango that served Mark Ramprakash and Karen Hardy well - their Argentine version set them firmly on the road to victory.

 

Dirty dancing

 

You had to feel sorry for poor old Christopher Parker. His version of the Paso Doble went somewhat pear-shaped, prompting judge Len Goodman to describe him as being like a "scud missile". He was so bad and annoyed the judges so much that the viewers kept voting for him and he made it to the final - that's one way to do it. Brendan Cole didn't seem to get on with his series two partner, Casualty's Sarah Manners, at all. So much so, that their Dracula-inspired dance to Evanescence's Bring Me To Life was a flop.

 

In the series three final, former hurdler Colin Jackson and his partner Erin Boag seemed to have a moment of madness and threw away the competition with a bizarre dance which saw them attached to dolls rather than each other. The judges and the audience were none too impressed and cricketer Darren Gough went on to win. Things went from bad to worse for Brendan, who was partnered with feisty actress Claire King in 2006. He had a strop on live TV, complaining about the marks and saying they had "lost the plot". The judges in turn had something to complain about when Brendan kept doing illegal lifts in his routines.

 

The Garraway Effect

 

In 2007, GMTV's Kate Garraway had a torrid time on the show. Her dancing frequently failed to impress the judges and an injury to her ankle didn't help. Kate came bottom with the judges five times – but escaped the dance-off until the seventh week. The more the judges crucified her, the more the public backed her. She finally left the competition after losing to John Barnes.

 

Over the years, Strictly Come Dancing has provided some moments of high drama. There's every expectation that the sixth series will continue this trend.