Darcey Bussell makes her debut as judge on Strictly Come Dancing... and she's much nicer than Craig Revel Horwood!
|
She had big shoes to fill when she signed up to the programme.
But on Friday night Darcey Bussell made an easy transition on to the Strictly Come Dancing judging team.
The retired ballerina took the place of Alesha Dixon, who was originally drafted in to take female panellist Arlene Phillips' seat.
Making her debut: Darcey Bussell is seen in her judging seat for the first time on Friday night's Strictly Come Dancing
And fans have now finally got the chance to see her in action.
It seems she will be the friendly and fair judge if the debut episode is anything to go by.
And it's a good job too as Craig Revel Horwood has come back nastier and meaner than ever.
Calm and collected: The retired ballerina replaced Alesha Dixon on the panel and made constructive comments to the stars
Chemistry: She fitted in well with the other judges, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli, and even Craig Revel Horwood, who was being mean to the dancers
Horwood managed to slate most of the six contestants who took it in turns to take to the floor for the first time on Friday.
He complained about Fern Britton 'wafting' her dress too much, while he berated new Venezuelan dancer Karen Hauer, who had teamed up with Nicky Byrne, for breaking a rule.
But for each celebrity Darcey had a very different approach, praising them when she could.
Making her mark: She happily got involved in the banter as she gave her reactions to the six dances she saw
Miss nice: While Craig ranted about the dances, Darcey praised them and offered encouragement to improve
And when she felt they were getting hard time or could have done with improvement she offered constructive criticism.
Especially to Olympic golden child Victoria Pendleton, who was left in tears as she made her debut on the dancefloor on Strictly Come Dancing on Friday night.
She placed at the bottom of the leader board despite being partnered with Brendan Cole, who is notorious for aiming to be at the top.
Break down: Olympic medallist Victoria Pendleton was left in tears on Strictly Come Dancing during her debut performance on Friday night as she messed up her moves and ended up at the bottom of the leader board
Judge Bruno Tonioli even likened her performance to that of her 'falling off her bike' as she made some errors in the routine due to her nerves taking over.
Nevertheless she looked stunning as she first took to the dancefloor in a hot pink halterneck outfit.
Fans are used to seeing her with barely any make-up on and her hair scraped back as she concentrates on winning her medals on the back of her bike.
Being comforted: She is used to always being on the top of her game but let her nerves get the better of her on the dancefloor
Perfectionist: Pendleton looked glamorous in her pink ensemble and impressed with the dance moves but scored low for forgetting all of the moves
But she looked a million dollars as her dark locks were coiffed into curls with a slick of pink lipstick to match the glitzy ensemble.
Six of the 14 contestants made their debut on the show, with the remaining eight set to show their credentials on Saturday night.
Compared to some of the other contestants on Friday night's show, which included the likes of Westlife's Nicky Byrne and TV presenter Fern Britton, Victoria's routine contained a lot more trickier moves.
Come here! Dance partner Brendan Cole gave her a hug as she got upset after hearing the judges' low scores
But she fell into problems when she messed up some of her moves.
And despite it being the debut show, the judges didn't pull any punches with their scores - especially harsh judge Craig Revel Horwood.
As soon as the dance stopped, Pendleton turned around to Brendan and gasped: 'I'm so sorry,' despite him trying to comfort her after she realised she'd ruined some of the routine.
And as she turned to the panellists to hear their verdicts her concerned face was obvious for all to see.
Looking good: Despite messing up the routine Victoria was still given encouragement for the 'potential' she showed
Not what she's used to: Victoria apologised to dance partner Brendan Cole when she felt like she'd let him down
New judge Darcey Bussell attempted to reassure the Olympic cyclist, telling her: 'Victoria... so impressive there was so much dance there... don't worry, don't worry.'
Before she then gave her some constructive criticism in a bid to help her: 'One thing that I think will help you... wear a smaller heel,' before adding: 'There's so much potential there.'
But it did little to help Pendleton's mood as she clearly had teary eyes and a worried expression on her face.
Next up was Len Goodman, who again said: 'There's so much potential.'
But it was, of course, down to Bruno Tonioli to speak straight while also lightening the mood.
He said: 'Bless you, you know you messed it up so much... You fell of the bike - now get back on it!'
But despite his optimism Craig looked far than impressed, finally giving her an unfortunate four out of 10.
Although they gave her encouragement, the other judges also scored her low, tallying a total of 15, making her the lowest out of the six celebrities on the night's show.
First up: TV presenter Fern Britton was the first to take to the dance floor and was berated by Craig Revel Horwood for 'wafting' her skirt too much
Backstage as she talked to host Tess Daly, who looked radiant in a black dress, Victoria looked like she was about to break down again.
And she was quickly comforted by both Tess and Brendan, who gave her a cuddle.
But she wasn't the only surprise of the night.
First up to dance was TV presenter Fern Britton, who couldn't believe her luck when she was partnered with Artem Chigvintsev.
She walked on stage full of good intentions with her purple glitzy frock.
And Fern seemed to enjoy it as she made her own debut in front of the audience and judges, but it was down to Revel Horwood again to put her in her place after complaining about her 'wafting' her skirt too much.
Scolded: Westlife's Nicky Byrne impressed with his moves but new dancer Karen Hauer was told off by Craig for adding a lift in to the dance and thus breaking a rule
Waging a war: Karen joked around as host Bruce Forsyth looked shocked while Craig Revel Horwood continued to rip into them
He bemoaned: 'There was a lot of skirt wafting... I would have liked a little less wafting,' before adding: 'Complete disaster.'
Other stars to compete on the first show included Westlife's Nicky Byrne, who was partnered up with another new addition this year - professional Venezuelan dancer Karen Hauer.
And although they got off to a shaky start when she admitted she'd never even heard of his band Westlife, they looked good on the dance floor strutting their stuff.
But another shock was in store when they were given a telling off by Craig Revel Horwood who strongly berated Karen over the routine.
He ranted: 'I'm not happy Karen. I know you're new but you broke one rule - there was a lift in this dance, there shouldn't be in a ballroom waltz.
Good start! Cricketer Michael Vaughn seemed to enjoy himself as he partnered Australian dancer Natalie Lowe, ending up in the middle of the leader board
'Looks like we've got a female version of Brendan Cole... and you will be marked severely down. You'll have your chance in American smooth for lifts... I wish you'd give Nicky a chance. I could go on...'
To which an on form Bruce Forsyth quipped: 'Please don't.'
Cricketer Michael Vaughn also showed off his moves, as well as his likeable personality, as he teamed up with Australian dancer Natalie Lowe.
Impressive! Colin Salmon wowed with his early potential as he danced with professional partner Kristina Rihanoff
'The best til last': Denise Van Outen was last on stage and ended up rocketing to the top of the leader board with her moves
And he obviously impressed as he came in the middle of the leader board thanks to his efforts in the Waltz.
However, Bruno quipped after the dance: 'Your face was so tight, you looked like Shane Warne after the makeover.'
But it seemed like it was the last two dances of the night which finally pleased the judges.
They're back! Tess Daly looked radiant as she played it safe in black, while Bruce was, of course on form with his jokes throughout the hour-long show
The scores so far: Denise Van Outen came top, while Victoria lagged behind, but eight more stars will be giving it a go for themselves on Saturday night's show
First Bond star Colin Salmon showed off his Cha Cha to great effect, causing Len Wiseman to call it one of the best of the night, while he landed in second place for the night.
But it was cheeky TV presenter Denise Van Outen who topped the board with the final dance of the night.
Craig finally showed he could be nice by simply stating: 'Save the best til last I say.'
The remaining eight contestants will now get their chance to debut their skills on Saturday's night show, although no contestants will leave this week as the results will be carried over to next week's scores.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2213699/Strictly-Come-Dancing-2012-Darcey-Bussell-makes-debut-judge--shes-nicer-Craig-Revel-Horwood.html#ixzz28VgJTVPg
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
