OHMYGOSSIP — Laura Whitmore kicked off the new series of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ with an energetic cha cha to ‘Venus’.
The 31-year-old television presenter and her dancing partner Giovanni Pernice impressed the judges with a first class routine full of exciting moves.
Speaking after her performance, Len Goodman said: “Well, I must say, what a lovely start to the show. A lovely amount of cha cha content which I appreciate. You’ve got to work on straightening your legs but first on, first class!”
However, Craig Revel Horwood lived up to his reputation, slamming Laura for having flexed knees throughout the performance.
He added: “The whole thing was danced on flexed knees. I thought the whole thing was a little unstable.”
However, Craig was impressed at times during the night – particularly by Ore Oduba’s unconventional tango to ‘Geronimo’.
He told the BBC television presenter and his dance partner Joanne Clifton: “I loved all the storytelling at the beginning, it set up the whole dance for me.”
Judge Robert Rinder brought some excitement to the proceedings with a “extraordinary” cha cha to ‘Mercy’.
Darcey Bussell gushed: “It was extraordinary. That was the wildest surprise I’ve ever had. The amount of detail you were able to add was outstanding.”
Whilst the night was filled with excitement and glee, there was a poignant moment when Lesley Joseph and Anton du Beke waltzed to the ‘Birds Of A Feather’ theme tune ‘What’ll I Do’.
The performance left judge Bruno Tonioli feeling “very emotional”, whilst Len praised the 70-year-old actress’ “clean and precise footwork”.
Naga Munchetty also impressed with her own waltz and admitted she was very “relieved” to have got the first dance over and done with.
Olympian Greg Rutherford – who jointly topped the leaderboard with Ore – rounded off the night with a fabulous jive to ‘Get Ready’.
Len told him: “It was as good as we’ve seen tonight, 100 per cent. You came out there, you gave it full on, a great attack. But you’re a really good dancer and I’m looking forward to seeing it.”
Whilst Bruno added: “By the way it looks, Greg could go all the way. That’s what I mean by giving it welly. I loved it. I’m telling you, you have talent. I really loved watching you.”
‘Strictly Come Dancing’ continues on Saturday evening (24.09.16), where the other nine contestants will take to the ballroom floor for the first time.

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OHMYGOSSIP — Ed Balls had to get his eyebrows plucked for ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
The former politician has been busy slaving away in the dance studio to ensure he’s ready for the live shows, which kick off this weekend, but he has admitted nothing could prepare him for the amount of fittings and pampering he’s been forced to endure for the programme.
Speaking on BBC Radio Two on Friday (23.09.16), he said: “I’ve had so many fittings, where you’re sort of pushed around and manhandled, and I’ve never experienced that before. So far I’ve said no to the spray tan but I did have an eyebrow pluck. That was a first for me. There was a bit of a stray hair and I thought they’d just pluck it. It took my 49 years to have a pluck so I quite enjoyed that.”
But, although he’s just about used to the amount of time he has to spend in the make-up chair and dressing room, the 49-year-old author is still trying to master the steps ahead of his debut.
He explained: “Last week we did about 35 hours across the week and the same the week before so it’s been quite intense. If you’re going in from scratch, you can’t dance at all.”
And, despite spending a total of 70 hours learning the moves, Ed still doesn’t feel ready to hit the dance floor with his partner Katya Jones.
Asked how much practice he’s had, he said: “Not enough, I’ve got a very good partner called Katya and she thinks about eight hours a day is just about right and if I arrive 10 minutes late, she’s standing at the door with her arms crossed ready for me to get capsized.”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Paul Daniels has left an estate worth under £500,000.
The magician – who tragically died of cancer in mid-March – left the majority of his assets to his wife Debbie McGee but, despite the gross value coming in at more than £1.5 million, she’ll only get her hands on a bit of the cash as legal fees and his debuts amounted to more than £1 million, court documents, obtained by the Mail Online, have revealed.
Paul – who died at the age of 77 – was married to Debbie for 28 years after they met in London in May 1979 during rehearsals for his summer season show in Great Yarmouth.
Shortly after his death earlier this year, Debbie, 57, revealed she and Paul had spent his final days in the garden of their £2.5 million home in Berkshire, eating ice creams and watching the ITV television show ‘The Chase’.
She said: “I don’t think Paul and I will meet again in heaven. I don’t believe in the afterlife – I wish I did. I was so comforted by the fact that we always said ‘I love you.’ We enjoyed every day of life. We were a team, even through the bad times.
“I will miss watching him with other people. Most people he met, he made them feel good, they took something away which was nice. It was lovely to see that.”
Paul found out he was battling with a brain tumour just four weeks before he passed away and, although he was initially being cared for in hospital, Debbie was determined to get him home so he could spend his final days in comfort and around his beloved friends and family.
Paul also left behind his three sons Gary, Paul and Martin, who he had with his first wife Jacqueline Skipworth.

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OHMYGOSSIP — Prince Charles and Duchess Camilla want to compete on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
The 67-year-old prince and his wife – whom he married in 2005 – are huge fans of the ballroom and latin show and would love to make their way on to the line up in the future.
Tess Daly – who presents the glitzy programme – told the Metro newspaper: “I’m an ambassador for Prince Charles’ charity The Prince’s Trust, we were talking and it turns out he’s a fan. He told me he’s always been desperate, that the one dance he would love to learn is the Argentine tango! I love to picture them at home, dancing along.”
And Tess isn’t the only one who would like to see the royal couple grace the dance floor as Craig Revel Horwood thinks Camilla would fit in perfectly on the judging panel.
He said recently: “When it comes to my dream new judge – well, it’s got to be my friend the Duchess of Cornwall. I’ve been desperate to get a royal on the show. Camilla could be just wonderful. She loves the show. She absolutely adores it.”
And the 69-year-old duchess is no stranger to sitting on the panel as she was given the chance to sit in a seat a few years ago when she was given a ‘Strictly…’ tour.
Tess explained: “She came down a couple of years a go and spent the day with us – she was wonderful and really game. She sat on the judges’ panel holding a number 10 paddle. She told me, ‘We actually vote!’ and I thought, ‘Who takes down the phone number to ring?’ ”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Jo Brand doesn’t yet know if her ‘Great British Bake Off’ spin-off has been axed following the show’s move to Channel 4.
The 59-year-old comedienne has “no idea” whether she will front ‘The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice’ when the main programme shifts broadcaster next year as no one has spoken to her yet about the future of her series.
Speaking on ‘Lorraine’ on Friday (23.09.16), she said: “I’ve no idea. I honestly, I can say no one’s said anything to me, so I don’t know anything.”
Jo has fronted the spin-off – sometimes known as ‘Extra Slice’ – since 2014 and she’s gutted that her friend Mary Berry, 81, has decided to quit the main show following its sudden switch.
She said: “I don’t blame Mary, she probably wants to put her feet up. I mean I’m 20 years younger and I’d quite like to put my feet up. She’s amazing. I’d like to think she will come round my house and bake exclusively for me.”
Mary – who has judged on ‘GBBO’ for seven years – turned her back on the popular show out of “loyalty” to the BBC.
However, her co-judge Paul Hollywood opted for a different approach and agreed to stay on the programme for at least three series when it moves across to Channel 4.
He said recently: “Since I was a kid, baking has been part of my life. The seven series inside the tent have created some great memories.
“Best of all, I have felt so pleased to experience other people getting the baking bug, just as I did when my dad helped me make my first loaf.
“The ‘Great British Bake Off’ has brought baking to the nation and we’ve seen people from all walks of life and backgrounds, experience the highs and lows of competition, and more importantly helping each other.
“It’s been a huge part of my life in the past few years and I just couldn’t turn my back on all that – the bakers themselves, the bakes, the team that makes it, and of course the tent, the bunting, and who could forget… the squirrels. So I am delighted that I will be continuing as a judge when ‘…Bake Off’ moves to Channel 4.”
The future of the programme has been hanging in limbo since it was revealed Channel 4 had bought the rights to the show for an estimated £75 million last week.
Channel 4 reportedly waded in with the three-year mega money deal after they found out negotiations between the BBC and Love Productions – the makers of the programme – had broken down.
The show’s hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc announced they would no longer front the show after they found out the BBC had lost its rights to the popular series.

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OHMYGOSSIP — Marnie Simpson has hinted she’s split with Lewis Bloor.
The ‘Geordie Shore’ beauty recently admitted her relationship with the personal trainer was proving harder than she thought it would, but it seems things have now come to a head as she shared a cryptic post on Twitter on Friday (23.09.16).
She simply wrote: “Real shame.”
The message has now been deleted from her social networking site but Lewis proved all is not well between them when he shared a hard hitting Bob Marley quote on his Instagram account two hours after Marnie’s cryptic post.
Alongside a photograph of the 24-year-old reality TV star in a purple satin bra and matching thong, the 26-year-old hunk wrote: “If she’s amazing, she won’t be easy. If she’s easy, she won’t be amazing. If she’s worth it, you wont give up. If you give up, you’re not worthy” – Bob Marley (sic)”, alongside her name.
The couple only started dating earlier this summer and, despite declaring their love for one another inside the house, Marnie recently admitted she’s struggling with their public relationship because there are so many rumours.
She said: “Things are still going well between me and Lewis, but I find out relationship really hard, if I’m honest. I want things to be as amazing as they were on ‘CBB’ but I was being unrealistic because it’s so different outside.
“I want to keep things private, because I don’t want to give people a reason to talk about us. I already get tweets when he’s doing PAs. It’s so stressful.”
However, it’s hardly surprising the couple are finding things difficult as they’ve only just spent their first weekend alone together since they left the infamous abode in August.
Marnie explained: “I’ve just got back from a romantic break in Barcelona with Lewis. We finally found a weekend when we could both get away, so we booked it last-minute.
“It was nice to escape and relax for a few days, just the two of us. It’s just what we needed.”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Zoe Hardman has given birth to a baby girl.
The 33-year-old TV presenter welcomed her little girl – known at the moment as ‘Little L’ – into the world with her rugby playing boyfriend Paul Doran-Jones on Monday (19.06.19) but she’s yet to announce the tot’s name.
Taking to his Instagram account on Friday (23.09.16), Zoe uploaded a photograph of her newborn’s tiny fingers alongside the caption: “On Monday evening our beautiful little girl arrived into the world… now I know what perfection is. We love u so much Little L @PaulDoranJones” (sic).
The former ‘Take Me Out: The Gossip’ presenter was delighted when she found out she was expecting a baby earlier this year as she was initially concerned she wouldn’t be able to fall pregnant naturally because her sister went through early menopause at the age of just 34.
She said recently: “I have a very low AMH rate, which is anti-mullerian hormone, one of the markers for low ovarian reserves. So basically I don’t have many eggs left.”
And, although they’ve only been dating just over a year, Zoe is thrilled she can finally start her family with her beau.
She said: I am in safe hands with this one. He’s a good egg.”
Meanwhile, this may be the first child for Zoe but Paul has already had plenty of practice when it comes to changing nappies and dealing with sleepless nights as he also has three-year-old daughter Isla from a previous relationship.
He said: “My daughter’s the best thing that’s happened to me – we’re so close. One of the amazing things about Zoe is how close she is with Isla, too. Seeing Zoe around my daughter just confirmed everything for me.”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Mary Berry is set to front her own rival cooking show on the BBC.
The 81-year-old culinary queen quit the ‘Great British Bake Off’ on Thursday (22.09.16), a week after Channel 4 snatched the rights to the popular series from the BBC, out of “loyalty” to the broadcaster, and now she’s being lined up for her own programme with hosts Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc.
A source told the Daily Mirror newspaper: “We’ve got three of the fab four staying with us. We’re thrilled. The chances of us reuniting Mary, Mel and Sue are very high.”
Producers are planning to draft the new format later this year and are hoping their forthcoming series will rival ‘GBBO’.
However, they’re on a frantic hunt for a second judge after Paul Hollywood – who worked alongside Mary on the show for seven years – recently agreed to follow ‘GBBO’ to Channel 4.
And they currently have their eye on celebrity chef James Martin as bosses believe he has a huge fan base stemming from his 10 years working on ‘Saturday Kitchen’.
Meanwhile, Paul may have been slammed with backlash since he announced he’d signed a three-year deal with Channel 4 but he has admitted he thinks Mary made the “right decision” to walk away from the cooking series when she did.
The 51-year-old baker said: “I’m staying in the tent with the bakers where I belong. I want to thank Mary. I’ll miss her but she has made the right decision for her. (sic).”
The future of the ‘GBBO’ has been hanging in the balance since it was revealed Channel 4 had bought the rights to the show for an estimated £75 million last week.
Channel 4 reportedly waded in with the three-year mega money deal after they found out negotiations between the BBC and Love Productions – the makers of the programme – had broken down.
The show’s hosts Sue and Mel announced they would no longer front the show after they found out the BBC had lost its rights to the popular series.

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OHMYGOSSIP — Aaron Chalmers has signed up for ‘Ex on the Beach’.
The ‘Geordie Shore’ hunk has reportedly agreed to take part in the new series of the reality TV show and bosses are hoping to persuade his on/off lover Marnie Simpson, who is now dating Lewis Bloor, to emerge from the sea for him.
A source told The Sun newspaper: “Aaron will be a great addition to the show – he’s always on the lookout for a good looking lass. He also loves a bit of an argument as he and Marnie had countless rows when they were an on-off couple on ‘Geordie Shore’. He is pretty straight talking and doesn’t mind showing how he enjoys making up with his lovers on TV either. It should be an explosive series with him on board.”
Bosses are hoping the 25-year-old heartthrob will cause as much as chaos as his ‘Geordie Shore’ co-star Gaz Beadle did when he took part ‘Ex on the Beach All Stars’ in Thailand.
The insider explained: “‘Geordie Shore’ housemates have a history of causing a stir on ‘EOTB’ and there’s no doubt that Aaron will have just as much of an impact.
“Aaron has hooked up with some big characters in the past so he will definitely be getting more than a few calls from the Tablet of Terror while he’s in the villa.”
Meanwhile, although bosses are determined to pull Marnie in for a guest appearance, Aaron admitted recently he has no interest in rekindling his turbulent love with the brunette beauty after he watched her share a smooch with Lewis in the ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ house earlier this summer.
He wrote on Twitter at the time: “Just going to say 1 thing about CBB! me and marnie are not together and never will be!! That ship has sunk!! I wish her all the best tho. (sic)”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Andrew Davies believes his version of ‘Les Misérables’ will do “the book justice”.
The 80-year-old Welsh writer – who is most popular for his adaptation of ‘House of Cards’ in 1990 – doesn’t think anyone has created a successful remake of the 19th century novel by Victor Hugo, although he believes his six-part television series will be a true depiction and will “open people’s eyes”.
Speaking about his latest project during a Q&A which followed a special BFI [British Film Institute] screening of his 1987 TV drama ‘Inappropriate Behaviour’ to mark his 80th birthday and more than 50 years writing, he said: “I don’t think anybody has done justice to the book yet before. Certainly the musical doesn’t, it is kind of a pathetic take on bits of the novel.
“But I think this will open people’s eyes to what is actually there. I think it has got an awfully lot of relevance at the moment. Be it people living on the streets there, and we’ve got the problem with migrants in terrible difficulty and there’s a sort of humanity about it all that shines through.”
And the creative mastermind – who received the Outstanding Writing for a Mini-series Emmy award for ‘Little Dorrit’ – has admitted he has got a particular actor in mind to play the lead role as Jean Valjean, although he wants to keep the casting under wraps in case he is unable to secure the stars he intends to feature in the show.
He explained: “My Jean Valjean is quite a scary guy, the type of guy who came knocking on the door asking for something to eat you’d be scared stiff. I have got someone I’m thinking about but I can’t say in case we don’t get him. Then we could get someone else who would be wonderful so we can’t talk about casting right now. We’re in the gestation period, no ones in a hurry.”
Meanwhile to celebrate Andrew’s birthday and half a century at the helm of the industry, a collection of his original works have been released on the BBC store website, which includes a number of his films from the 1970s and 1980s.
Andrew Davies: Originals Collection available https://store.bbc.com/collections/andrew-davies-originals
Andrew Davies: Adaptations collection https://store.bbc.com/collections/andrew-davies-adaptation.

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OHMYGOSSIP — Dame Joan Collins wants to join ‘Coronation Street’.
The 83-year-old actress is obsessed with the long-running soap and would love nothing more than to snap up a permanent role.
A source told the Daily Star newspaper: “Joan loves ‘Corrie’ and has been making sure she is up to date with it while on the road. With any luck she could get a recurring role in it.”
The brunette star is no stranger to the cobbles as she made a brief cameo as herself in the soap’s spin off ‘Viva Las Vegas’ 16 years ago when she rubbed shoulders with Jack and Vera Duckworth (played by Bill Tarmey and Elizabeth Dawn respectively) on board a plane en route to Sin City.
Although she’s desperate to grace the streets of Weatherfield, Joan is very selective when it comes to what roles she takes.
It was recently revealed the former ‘Dynasty’ star was offered the part of Tabitha Maxwell-brown on Channel 4’s ‘Hollyoaks’ but she snubbed the chance and bosses later approached Dallas’ Linda Gray – a long time rival of Joan’s – instead.
She said recently: “I was just asked to be in ‘Hollyoaks’ but I’m not doing it. You know who is doing it? Linda Gray.”
But Joan – who tragically lost her sister Jackie Collins late last year – shows no signs of slowing down just yet.
She said: “I’m going to go on as long as I can. Besides 70 is the new 50 and up and up. I said to the Queen … Well, I didn’t actually, I said it to Jerry Lewis. But 90 is the new 70.”

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OHMYGOSSIP — Greg Rutherford doesn’t want to strip on ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
The champion long jumper told producers he wouldn’t be flashing the flesh on the dance floor this series because he wants people to fall in love with his snake hips and groovy moves, but he’s now starting to think peeling off his kit may be the only option for success.
He explained: “Funnily enough, I said to the producers that I didn’t want to be ‘the sports guy who takes his top off’ – you know, there’s one in every series. I just wanted people to judge me on my dancing, but reality is kicking in now: if the dancing starts to go badly, I’ll have to go down the shirtless route.”
However, the 29-year-old hunk has been training for 10 hours a day with his professional partner Natalie Lowe in the hope that he’ll know the moves like the back of his hand prior to his debut.
He said: “It’s going really well but it’s really tough. I’m doing 10-hour training days with my partner Natalie Lowe, because I’m hoping that putting in loads of hard work will make up for my innate lack of dancing ability when we take to the dance floor.”
But the flame-haired athlete has already developed a love for ballroom and can’t wait to start doing lifts with his partner.
He explained: “The ballroom positions are lovely and suit my body shape, so that’s looking better. And I’m strong, so if there are any lifts to be done I’ll be straight in there.”
The competition may not be in full swing just yet but Greg has already sussed out his competitors and believes sports presenter Ore Oduba will be one to watch as the series progresses.
Speaking to the Metro newspaper, he said: “Ore is one to watch. He’s got rhythm and he’s my dance floor mate, so I’ve got to tip him. Will Young has done ballet and Claudia Fragapane looks strong too.”
‘Strictly Come Dancing’ will hit screens on Friday (23.09.16) on BBC One at 9pm.

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OHMYGOSSIP — ‘Victoria’ has been commissioned for a second series.
The ITV period drama proved such a huge hit with viewers since it arrived on screens last month starring Jenna Coleman and Ted Huges that it’s been given the go-ahead to return for another series.
ITV bosses are said to have secured more episodes, which is partly down to its lead over rival ‘Poldark’.
They are also hoping the show will emulate the success of international success ‘Downtown Abbey’.
A source told The Sun newspaper: “It is going to come back. They recommissioned it a while ago. It has increased its ratings lead over ‘Poldark’ every week and it is a genuine hit. They’re hoping it will be very popular in the US who love the ‘Royal Family’ and lapped up ‘Downton Abbey’.”
The decision to recommission the programme comes after it won a massive 500,000 more viewers on Sunday (18.09.16) over ‘Poldark’ which airs at the same time on BBC One.
With ITV having wrapped their last period hit ‘Downton Abbey’ last year, bosses are reportedly looking to start exporting ‘Victoria’ worldwide as a replacement for the beloved drama.
The news of a second series for the royal drama comes after it was recently teased that there would be some “steamy scenes” coming up, following the reports of a relationship between main stars Tom, 30, and the former ‘Doctor Who’ star.
Writer Daisy Goodman said: “Well it depends what you mean by steamy, we’ve got a sauna scene, haven’t we?”
In the same interview, Daisy described characters Victoria and Albert as “a very sexy couple” and even teased she was “quietly confident” about a second series for the show.

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