Strictly Come Dancing 2023 week 12 recap: Best moments from semi-final
The four remaining couples gave it their all, in a bid to make it to next week's final.
This year's Strictly Come Dancing semi-final kicked off in style, with Bobby Brazier and his partner Dianne Buswell performing a stylish Quickstep to Mack the Knife by Bobby Darin.
Judges heaped praise on the routine, with Shirley saying Bobby is now "the king of ballroom". It led to the couple getting their best score of the season yet, 38 points, but they wouldn't have long to celebrate, as they had to prepare for their second dance of the night.
That's right, this was the first week in which each of the couples had to perform two dances, with Bobby and Dianne going on to perform a Paso Doble to Run Boy Run by Woodkid.
Next, it was Layton Williams's turn to take to the dance floor, with he and partner Nikita Kuzmin getting a slightly more mixed reception to their Rumba to Lift Me Up by Rihanna.
However, their big moment was truly yet to come, as their Charleston to Fit as a Fiddle by Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor brought the house down, and saw them once again score a perfect 40 points.
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In fact, Craig Revel Horwood gave the dance a standing ovation, and said that it was the best Charleston he has ever seen on the show - high praise indeed!
Annabel Croft fared less well when it came to the judges comment and scores, landing bottom of the leaderboard with both of her dances and with her Salsa to You'll Be Mine (Party Time) by Gloria Estefan being called "spiky" by Craig.
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However, fans were quick to jump to Annabel's defence, and even the judges conceded that a "perfect dance" can be "boring", and they were instead just in awe at her progress throughout the season.
Ellie Leach's two dances - a Cha Cha Cha to Mambo Italiano by Bette Midler and their Couple's Choice to a Dua Lipa Medley - were both popular with the judges and fans alike, but has she done enough to stay in the competition?
We'll find out during tonight's (Sunday 10th December) results show, where the three finalists for Strictly Come Dancing 2023 will be confirmed...
Strictly Come Dancing airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The results show will air on Sunday 9th December.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
