Thursday 28th February
After last week’s array of not quite iconic dances, the
field was wide open in the second round of heats of Let’s Dance for Comic
Relief. This week I watched the show accompanied by my gran and her, shall we
say, firm opinions, giving this week’s judges Jason Manford, Paloma Faith and
Lisa Riley a run for their money.
Opening the show were the cast of Waterloo Road as the Spice
Girls, which was a lot of fun, especially with the men who adapted to their
female alter ego very enthusiastically.
Unfortunately mid-way through my gran and I realised simultaneously that the
man dressed as Posh Spice looked uncannily like me – a sobering moment which
cast a shadow over the performance.
Jon Culshaw’s brilliant repertoire of impressions suggested
he would be perfect for Let’s Dance,
but rather than impersonate anyone in particular he undertook a routine to
Fatboy Slim involving an exciting dash from Television Centre reception to the
studio. Unfortunately once he got there all he had the energy left to do was
leap around a bit aimlessly. Shot down by my gran with the judgement that it
was “galumphing”.
Kim of ‘Kim and Aggie’ fame confusingly turned up without
her partner but with TV chef Rosemary Shrager instead. I wondered why Aggie hadn’t
signed up, until I saw the horrific dresses they had been lumbered with, the
lifts that almost ended in disaster, and the pair’s vague grasp of the choreography.
Aggie was probably wise to avoid, but Kim and Rosemary were certainly this
week’s good sports.
Comedienne Katherine Ryan, frequenter of 8 Out of 10 Cats, took
on Nicki Minaj with a hilariously accurate bodysuit and a send-up of Minaj’s
irritating style that Culshaw would have been proud of. Closing the show was
Antony Cotton, backed by my gran due to him being “such a gentle looking
person”. Despite randomly setting his routine in an old people’s home, Cotton
proved to be the star of the night, revealing his hidden tap-dancing talent. As
Jason Manford noted, he was almost too good for the show, although he wouldn’t
be the first tap-dancing winner if he managed to go all the way.
It seems as if the awkward karaoke competition held
backstage whilst votes are counted is unfortunately becoming a weekly feature
of the show, along with the at best mildly amusing pre-dance videos accompanied
by a deafening laughter track featuring the world’s most easily amused
audience. The videos reporting on Comic Relief’s various missions and
reminiscing over the best bits of 25 years of the telethon are a much more
worthwhile way to fill time.
Unsurprisingly Antony Cotton sailed through to the final, whilst
the gloriously dramatic Paloma Faith decided to send Katherine Ryan through (once
she was reminded of her name). Next week is the last round of heats before the final,
and with Justin Bieber set to perform, at least the celebrity contestants can
rest safe in the knowledge that they won’t be the worst thing to grace the
stage that evening.
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