Former Strictly Come Dancing pros James and Ola Jordan have opened up about the 2022 line-up ahead of their upcoming Strictly column for HELLO!, where they give their expertise on the routines on the show. So what do they think of the line-up so far? Find out here…
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Chatting to HELLO!, Ola said: "I think the contestants look good. They all look young and fit enough. A lot of them would probably have a background in dancing, like the actors or singers," with James added: "Like Fleur East, she's going to be very good. She's going to have rhythm. She's in the music industry, and with the kind of stuff she does where she dances, she's going to be very good. Matt Goss I think is going to be good too."
WATCH: James Jordan catches wife Ola dancing with daughter Ella - and it's so cute
Ola also recalled Matt appearing on the show while performing, explaining: "I danced to Matt Goss. He came and sang on Strictly one year and all the girls danced to him, and I was one of them. He did the Christmas Special if I remember as well."
And what about the sportspeople? Ola was too just about Tony Adams, joking: "I don't know if Tony Adams will be very good – footballers aren't normally very good!" James continued: "When people say 'sportspeople are really good', that's normally back in the day when you didn't have trained dancers on the show. Now there are trained dancers on Strictly, the sports people don't come across as well. The only thing they have going for them is maybe their work ethic. They work hard and push themselves."
James and Ola will be joining us to chat all things Strictly this year!
Ola agreed, saying: "You used to have sportspeople winning the show – they were always the best, but now there are good dancers on there, it's hard for them to break through."
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Chatting about why he thinks it’s okay that stars with dance experience appear on the show, James explained: "There's nothing wrong with that, but if you've been to stage school and have a dance background, you're going to be better than a sportsperson who's never danced before.
The pair gave their thoughts on Tony Adams
We've said this before: if you don't have celebs who are good at dancing, the show won't work. Some people say, 'Oh, it's not fair' but it's still an entertainment show and we want to be entertained. We want to see good dancing and bad dancing, and people trying and improving. You still need those good ones. For me, the comedians are always my favourites – because I've seen good dancing all my life."
And of course, the couple will be watching this year’s competition with their adorable toddler Ella. James said: "She'll be much more into it this year. She loves music and dancing around the kitchen."
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