Viva las Blackpool!

So here we are in the homeland, for both me, Clover and ballroom dancing - it's Blackpool week!

Everyone's dressed up and galloping across that ma-hu-sive floor. Loving the pro girls dress as showgirls and the boys in their little white trousers. Not loving Tess' scary red jumpsuit, it's not going to do anything to stop pregnancy rumours! Did however like hearing her say 'bucketloads' like a true Lancashire lass though.

Patsy and Robin
Liking the design of the costume, not the boring colours, we need hurt-your-eyes bright pink and green etc, Blackpool week is not the week for good taste! Thankfully they got the most kitsch-tastic of samba songs, if I was on Strictly myself I would need to do it to the Copacabana (which will obviously happen one day). Thought the dance itself was pretty decent, but no fireworks.

Kara and Artem
Despite the X-factor style will-they-won't-they-of-course-they-will opening I seriously loved this dance. I genuinely did not notice they didn't do anything in hold until Len pointed it out, it was so atmospheric I was carried away with it. I also liked how they didn't get too carried away with the lifts (boom boom), they could do three and he could have spun her around his head the whole time and didn't.

Matt and Aliona
Now those are some samba outfits! Aliona and her seriously distracting fringing, all it needed was some feathers and it would have been perfect. Love how Matt embraced the sparkle quite literally and threw those hips around. The run around at the start made me laugh, I'd have to have stopped for a sit down after cantering around that massive floor! And I liked the fancy ending with the backflips, he totally earned them after such a good routine.

Felicity and Vincent
Lovely frock, great song, horrendous opening! Look up Kate Gosling's awful Paparazzi paso doble from DWTS and you'll see why I hated it. Once the dance actually started it was indeed smooth and the band are doing a seriously good job. Felicity handled the lifts pretty well and brought her usual class and grace to it, but after two showstoppers it seemed a bit reserved.

Gavin and Katya
I hate the hat, I hate the miming, I have problems with the underlying misogynistic sentiment of She's A Lady, this was not going to be a good dance for me! Saying that, Katya certainly gave a very good performance, so good I forgot to watch Gavin most of the time. Maybe it's because his tan is the same colour as the Tower Ballroom floor and he blended in?

Scott and Natalie
I am going to come out and say I think this was totally undermarked. Think I may have been carried away with the excitement of it and the jingling of Natalie's fabulously naff 70s-Vegas-cavewoman outfit. Those shimmies had a hint of the Gethin Jones about them to me!

Pamela and James
A-ha, Pamela gets her mojo back! Pamela looks like a drag queen, James looks like a snooker play, perfect for Blackpool. I can forgive the silly opening and the fact it was practically a tango for the sheer campness of it. Pamela did look like she was having a psychotic episode during the end lift, bless her.

Ann and Anton
Well here we go then...will Anton make it through the dance without his trousers bursting into flames? We can but hope. At least he got them a fun samba song even if they didn't fancy doing any actual samba dancing. Was not enjoying this until the leg flinging antics begun and I thought Ann was going to break a hip. I can take these two as an amusing sideshow for now, but not forever and there are less and less people every week.

As for the results show, totally loved the laydeez and their bootylicious number. Cirque du thingy-bob were pretty good too with the High School Musical On Acid routine, gotta love a bit of flying and general insanity in Blackpool. In fact I feel like the place brings out the extra-oomph-ooh-la-la-va-va-voom in the show. I do realise I am now talking gibberish.

Felicity? I guess like last week it was her time to go (apart from You Know Who), she's pretty good but was never going to win. Felt sorry for Patsy, but when you go first you run the risk of being forgotten. Pack up your bucket and spade and get on with it girl.