Strictly Come Dancing fans expressed their dissatisfaction after watching the opening to the latest live show.
On Saturday (October 19), glitz and glamour returned for week five of the BBC series, with the remaining 12 pairs hitting the dance floor to dazzle not just the fans at home but also judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel-Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke.
Yet, viewers were thrown off within moments of the episode beginning when Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s traditional opener was cut for a second time, as they were already on their marks before filming commenced. Additionally, the judges’ duo entrances further baffled those tuning in.
Fans quickly flocked to X, previously known as Twitter, to air their grievances. One viewer wrote: “No Tess and Claudia grand entrance. Judges two at a time. What is this country.”
Another chimed in: “The format changes with Claudia and Tess just standing there after the credits and the judges and contestants coming out to random songs instead of the theme were jarring at first and remain awful. Change it back immediately!” reports the Mirror.
Another lamented: “These intros still aren’t working.” While a fourth concurred: “Feels too flat and rehearsed.”
These comments follow the departure of Nick Knowles from Strictly, who found himself leaving the show after a tense dance-off against ex-Coronation Street star Shayne Ward, becoming the third celebrity to exit the competition.
Nick and his professional dance partner Luba Mushtuk scored 21 points out of 40 from the judges for their Charleston to Rain on the Roof from the film Paddington 2, leaving them second from the bottom of the leaderboard last weekend.
When host Tess asked about his time on the show, Nick said: “I’ve really, really been surprised by how much I’ve loved doing it and by two things that happen.”
“One is how much you care each week, and the other is how much you don’t want to let down your partner.The only reason I could do this is simply because of Luba’s changes, she’s been amazing. There are some amazing dancers up there, and I will love watching the rest of the series.”
An emotional Luba added: “I’ve never met someone as determined as you, and I remember you saying that if you do your best, you’ll be very happy. I think you did more than your best. Thank you.”
Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One and BBC iPlayer