Strictly Come Dancing unveiled its latest innovation tonight as the Instant Dance challenge made its debut, and viewers have certainly shared their thoughts. Despite acknowledging the "chaos" of the section, it seems they have found it to be a delight.
The challenge, which had been implemented on international versions of the series, saw the remaining six couples take to the dancefloor for an on-the-fly routine, with the particular style being revealed via the opening of an envelope.
Not only that, each celebrity and their professional partner had only 15 seconds to choose their costume, which had been loaded onto rails on the dancefloor. Claudia Winkleman was there to aid them in their choice, before ushering them to the dressing rooms.
Once they were all adorned in luxury clothing, each couple had 10 seconds to confer with each other about their routine, before dancing in the style for 40 seconds. The judges would be paying close attention, with precious points on offer.
Lewis Cope and Katya Jones were the victors as they secured a maximum six points for their Jive, with Balvinder Sopal and Julian Caillon coming in second for their Paso Doble as they gained five points; Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin placed third for the Samba.
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Rounding out the group was Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe, who were awarded three points for the Rumba, while George Clarke and Alexis Warr gained two for the Tango. In last place was Karen Carney and Carlos Gu, who danced the Cha Cha.
With the Instant Dance being a first-time feature of the long-running BBC series, anticipation was high for the challenge, and it looks to have excited fans even despite the chaos that ensued on the stage.
"I’m so serious I need the Instant Dance to happen EVERY series. Iconic TV #Strictly" wrote one viewer on X, with another adding: "Forget I said I didn’t want the instant dance I just had the BEST TIME #strictly"
This sentiment was echoed by another fan, who quipped: "This #Strictly Instant Dance is a brilliant idea: you get to eavesdrop on how the dancers and celebs interact, everyone is out of their comfort zone, and anything could go wrong."
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Another fan also highlighted a moment in which Claudia was followed backstage as she carried a dress, with the viewer remarking: "This is surely a BAFTA winning moment. Absolute chaos with Instant Dance. I love it #StrictlyComeDancing"
"The Instant Dance segment on @bbcstrictly was pure chaotic but LOVED the concept! Hope they bring it back next series! #strictly" wrote one other viewer, while another added: "instant dance was the best and most chaotic thing I’ve ever seen and I loved it!!"
Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturdays on BBC One, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
