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i am so excited! how cute is gavin! (yes exclamation marks are necessary - in fact i may have to only use them from now until the final!)

I am loving the pairings - Anton is ideal for Anne - Lots of breaks and cups of tea! I think Jimi Mistry is the one to watch but also delighted for Brendan that he has a decent partner and will probably make the final!

Hmm, let's go through them all:

Anne - could be the John Sergeant of 2010. Has a good partner in Anton, but the height difference might go against her. Really wanted her to be with Vincent though.

Felicity - possible dark horse, could be a Cherie Lunghi. Vincent will make her ballroom good for sure.

Goldie - from my hometown so I'll be cheering him on. Kristina will work him into shape but he might be an early casualty, like what happened with Spoony. (should have been with Ola, imo)


Jimi - looking good I think. Quite possibly the best of the men. Had a feeling he'd be put with Flavia.

Kara - has had previous experience, so possibly an advantage. Although from what I saw, she might not be as good as we think. Don't know what to make of Artem, but he might be better at the Latin dances.

Matt - his gymnastic background might work out in his favour, but he could be another shock exit like Gabby Logan. Aliona had better do more work with him than she did with Rav last year otherwise he'll probably be one of the first out.

Michelle - another with previous experience. Good match with Brendan, possibly another Alesha or Lisa Snowdon there.

Pamela - another possible dark horse. She just needs to survive the James Jordan Week 4 curse and then she'll probably be ok. Top 6 maybe.

Patsy - not sure what to make of her. She might be better off in the ballroom. Robin might be another who's better at the Latin section.

Paul - what can I say? An early exit looks likely. Ola won't get too far this year.

Peter - another Schmeichel perhaps? If so then I'll want to see his Tango! Good partnership with Erin, had a hunch on that one.

Scott - somehow I have a feeling he might be a Joe Calzaghe. Natalie will do her best with him, top 6 maybe, but I don't think he will win.

Tina - from what I saw at the launch show, another top 6 contender, but she didn't look that good. Jared's most likely another who's better at the Latin.

Overall - my picks are Matt, Jimi and Michelle, with Pamela and Felicity being the wild cards.

Also, Strictly seems to pair them so that the former winners don't have as much of a chance. The only ones left now are Brendan and Ola. Ola doesn't have a shot, and Brendan, well he and Michelle might get somewhere, but they probably won't win.

Forgot to mention Gavin:

Seems quite shy to me. Another possible early shock exit. Katya might just have the same luck with him as she did Phil last year.

re gavin: shyness is a disadvantage, as the likelihood of someone shy giving their all isn't great. who knows though, ramps was very shy and he stole the show during his series.
i think michelle will suffer from the balshy americanism that can really put british audiences off. i like her so far though.
my money is on paul leaving first but other than that - its too hard to call right now.

i've already got a few potential crushes awaiting ;-)

Anton and Anne a good match personality wise but she has a hard enough job without trying to dance with a partner who must be a foot taller than her!

What a disappointment! Who on earth thought that Americanising this great show would be an improvement? Poor set - far too small - poor performances by the dancers - some ballroom would have been good - and poor old Anton. When will they partner him with someone who will at least get him past the first round. He deserves better. As for it being a great line up of celebrities we will have to wait and see, but first impressions leave much to be desired. Don 't think we will be watching it this year and we've been avid fans.

i am sorry to see that some off the best dancers are not on this year hopefully they left of their own terms, i like ann she says what she thinks sorry to say i dont think she will be with us for long. as for the new dancers they have a lot to live up to. anton if your with us on scd 2011 make sure you get a partner who you will have a chance with

Loved the launch show. I think there are some potentially great pairings in there but not really able to judge the celebs ability on just the group dance. Apart from Ian and Darren, I unfortunately didn't think much of the Show Dancers! But really looking forward to the series. Love Anton and Anne and hope they get through the first couple of weeks.

I can't wait for Matt Baker!
And you know there are two shows coming up- Friday 1st October and Saturday 2nd October- who will be dancing on which show? I want to apply for tickets but i don't know when to go because I want to see Matt Baker!
Answers would be appreciated :) Thanks.

I think Tina O'Brian and the new young male dancer will be this years romance ! They all ready look so cute together.

I watched the show and wondered where the magic had gone too? Just too showy and after watching the pairs be unveiled why did the pairs appear correctly in next weeks mini clips? Why Ö÷²¥´óÐã assume we were that gullible to not realsie the dancers/celebrities knew before the show!

Why does Anton always get a cart horse?
It was obvious last eyears winner Ola would get an older celebrity so not to have another chance of winning!
Why did James again get a mature woman? James has vast patience and has really mellowed over last two years! Would like to have seen James with Tina or Michelle!
Gavin looked lsot without his Welsh kit( which actually has been 18 mths since last donned)

Im not keen re the pairings just hope that Ann is not blasted too much bu the judges panel!

Sax

pieceofwork: my money's on Patsy and Robin for this year's romance. Although Anton and Anne would be a surprise entry...

The Launch show was good, but not as good as previous years. Personally I preferred the old format, and as another poster commented on, SCD is becoming very Americanised, it's losing that lovely appeal it once had.

I missed Brian Fortuna, Darren Bennett and of course the gorgeous Matt Cutler.

The 3 new male dancers, can't even remember their names, are a far cry from the charming, classy and very sexy male dancers we've been used to over the last few years. WHY do the Ö÷²¥´óÐã do this?

Their launch on to SCD came in the form of waistcoats over bare chests, looking like gym bunnies who would prefer to look at themselves than dance, well unless of course it means they strip off down to their waxed chests. ALL had designer stuble, in fact they looked like clones. They didn't have an ounce of class or charm amongst them - you would have thought one of them could have worn a Tuxedo for their introduction, after all it is ballroom dancing, but no, that would be too classy. Gosh, Matt Cutler looked dashing in a Tuxedo, and he could wear the more revealing stuff as well, and what a gentleman. Bring back the other dancers...please.

The new Female dancers are as equally narcissistical, with the show becoming nothing more than an overly Americanised silicone and self-obsessed display of self-interest.

And as for Anton - he never seems to get paired with any celebrity that could possibly provide him with scope to really use his skills and turn the celebrity into a dancer, although I think Anne is a super character!

Oh well and no message board this year..hmmm..lets see what 1st October brings!

The couples are great but bbc why o why does Anton yet again does not have a decent partner. Sorry Anne W i think it's great you are in the show and i hope you'll do great but i like for Anton to get a chance to win.

Mabye it's been explained before but than i missed it but why are some of the pro dancers been replaced? If someone needed te be replaced it's Alesha!

I think Paul Daniels and Ola look like they're going to have a blast. Not sure if he'll be able to dance but I bet they'll be cracking up in the training room.

Matt and Aliona looked like schoolkids who couldn't look at each other...a bit too much chemistry perhaps?...

I hated Robin and Artem's outfits - can't stand the open waistcoats on DWTS and don't want them here!

Jared's got a girlfriend already so I doubt there will be any romance.

I worry for Gavin and hope Katya can help him overcome his shyness. As he's said himself, he's very aware of his appearance and will probably worry about looking a plonker. Maybe the standby acting coach or Pamela Stephenson could help ease his nerves?
Talking of Pamela, the creation of the PamJam team made me laugh. Poor James, for better or worse, is going to be part of the Big Yin's stage show for the next year at least. Pam is such a good mimic as well. I'd love to be a fly on the wall in the Connelly house over the next few months. B4p

Not that I've noticed, but some of the couples are quite cute and pleasing to the eye. ;) But as I don't know who is actually single I won't try and pair anyone off, hehe.

I think Brendon & Michelle, Tina & Jared, Jimi & Flavia, Matt & Aliona and Goldie & Kristina could be good prospects, dance wise. I've also read that Patsy and Pamela could suprise too, so, it would seem there could be quite a few couples this year to watch out for in terms of nice routines, hopefully!

As a young man you would pesume that Gavin would have the stamina to dance but, on the face of it, he just looks abit scared doesn't he! Hopefully he'll be able to loose his inhibition and maybe he'll go on a ... journey! lol.

I forgot to add Kara and Artem to the mix of dance potential.

looking forward to seeing how well or not the celebs do with their first dances and how well they get on with their pro partners. My favourites initially are Jimi and Flavia who seem to complement each other well in looks and personality and also hope Matt Baker does well as he seems a great bloke.

Sorry that Darren,Lilia and Matt C are not paired up with celebs this year but I suppose they have already won SCD and it gives others a chance to win.

I'm not so worried about who is going to click as a couple or not this year, because the removal of the dance off means the public will vote for drama and comedy. Some will chuck in a vote for hard workers and some will limit their votes to best dancers, but I'm sure the vast majority of votes will be for incidents and personality. A jarring/sparring couple are just as likely to get votes as a smoothly working one.

I was very disappointed by the launch show and the changes. I don't object to change but I don't feel that the changes have improved the show at all. I'm as disappointed as many contributors by the treatment of Anton (no offence Anne I'm a great admirer of yours and do hope you do well). I know that tv is now youth culture obsessed, but what is the Strictly viewing demographic? Is there to be an on-going disrespect of the more mature viewer? I didn't enjoy the new chests either. There is nothing wrong with Ian Waite's torso! I'm sad to see our dancers relegated to show dances.

I can't believe so many posters on here have such selective memories! How can you claim Anton always gets someone rubbish when he had Laila last year?? Who knows how far she could have got with a professional who is more skilled at Latin!

@ HpFreak_Amy7192

yes I agree, Gavin could be like Heather Small, who had all the ability, but couldn't break out of self-consciousness on stage...

it's all about self-belief, any doubts will will surface in compromised movement...

I wish him and katya much luck tho...

Re: Gavin - Shyness could be endearing ? But he has to appear that he want to be there as well, sometimes shyness may seem like he doesn't care.

I would like to see Matt Baker do well , he always seems like a nice chap and a trier. But he 'understands' TV etc , so he has an advantage about how to present himself well to an audience.