The first night of Strictly Come Dancing was full of surprises, but no-one threw a bigger curveball than former Lioness Karen Carney.
Personally, my favourite Strictly contestants are the ones who slip completely under the radar in the lead-up to the first dance and end up being absolutely spectacular.
Bill Bailey was a wild outsider going into Strictly in 2020, but he was unstoppable once he took to the dancefloor, delivering some of the most memorable performances in the show’s 21-year history.
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Chris McCausland wasn’t on any bookmakers’ lists to win, but every week – from his first dance to his last – he had me bawling, with impeccable precision, timing, and care that would be impressive in any dancer, let alone a blind comedian.
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On Saturday night, I had the same chills watching Karen whip her feet around the Strictly ballroom as I did for Bill and Chris.
And what do Bill and Chris have in common? They both lifted the Glitterball trophy – and to my own surprise I think the women’s football pioneer can do the same.
I’ll be amazed if Ross King survives the first elimination. His timing was so spectacularly bad it was wince-inducing, even if he did capture the spirit of giving it his all.
Otherwise, it was one of the strongest starts to a Strictly series I can remember.
For now, Karen is still the dark horse of the competition – but if this is how she breaks out of the starting gate, I predict she could easily become the front-runner in no time at all.
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