George Clarke and Alexis on Strictly / Brendan Cole
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Concerns for George Clarke ahead of Strictly Blackpool week as he’s handed blow: ‘Does not sound good at all’

George came under fire from Craig last week

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George Clarke was heavily criticised by Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood last week, and it appears former pro-dancer Brendan Cole believes he has been handed another blow.

This weekend is the return of Blackpool week, what quite a lot of the celebrities aim for in the competition. But sadly, it was revealed today (November 18) that La Voix has had to pull out.

But it seems George may have been handed yet another blow as his dance and song seemingly don’t match. It comes after he was critiqued by Craig last week.

George and Alexis on Strictly
George dedicated his dance to his mum last weekend (Credit: BBC)

What did Craig say to George?

Last weekend, George and Alexis performed a Rumba to Lily Allen’s Somewhere Only We Know. And the dance had a very important meaning for George, as the song was sung at his grandad’s funeral.

But not only that, George dedicated the dance to his mum, amid her cancer diagnosis. George said in his VT: “Unfortunately, she got diagnosed with cancer. Nobody deserves what she has gone through, but least of all her. It feels like it has taken up so much of her life.”

However, Craig was the only judge to seemingly criticise George, which sparked a lot of annoyance online.

Craig told him: “Technically, it wasn’t great. I have to be honest. Actually, it wasn’t a Rumba. It was difficult to judge. I’m supposed to be judging a Rumba but you danced a contemporary dance that belongs in musical theatre.

“The story was absolutely magnificent. You told that beautifully. You will win the audience votes with that. But unfortunately, you won’t win my vote. It technically was not great.”

Brendan Cole at an event
Brendan thinks George needs to work hard (Credit: Sue Andrews / SplashNews.com)

Is this week on Strictly looking good for George Clarke?

It was revealed that George and his Strictly pro-dance partner Alexis Warr will be dancing a Salsa to Bob Sinclair for their Blackpool song. And for Brendan, this is the complete wrong choice.

He explained to our sister site Entertainment Daily that George had something more to prove this week after Craig’s comments. And this might not be the dance to get him there.

Brendan said: “George Clarke and Alexis Warr performing a Salsa for Blackpool week does not sound good at all.

“After a bad rumba, even though the judges mostly gushed over it apart from Craig, that song is horrendous. If you are doing a Salsa, you want authentic, sexy music. A modern pop track pretending to be a Salsa is a bad choice.”

Brendan also explained that George is going to want to put his all into his performance this week after last week’s scoring.

He said: “George Clarke has the most to prove in Strictly Blackpool week. Craig summed it up – the technical aspect of his rumba was pretty bad.

“It had a lovely story and the emotional build-up with his mum was touching. But that puts the judges in a tough spot. If you dedicate a dance to your mum who has been through hell, you can’t exactly slate it. But it needed criticism.”

So while George keeps winning the public’s hearts, it seems he has a lot of work to do to win around Craig and the other judges.

Read more: Vicky Pattison shares statement after sparking concerns with It Takes Two absence: ’So sorry

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Rebecca Sayers
Staff Writer