Strictly star Karen Carney was nervous to show off her emotions with viewers last weekend, according to a body language expert.
The former Lioness, who is competing on the hit BBC show alongside Carlos Gu, has reached this year’s final after topping the leaderboard on Saturday (December 13) with their salsa and waltz.
Throughout the competition, the pair have avoided the bottom two and are in for a chance to lift this year’s Glitterball Trophy on Saturday (December 20).
Strictly star Karen Carney went into ‘meltdown’ following praise
Last weekend, Karen and Carlos received high praise for both their dances, especially for their waltz, during which the pair showed great emotional depth at the end of the performance.
According to body language expert Judi James, Karen “struggles with a range of strong emotions and Carlos is almost as extreme”.
On behalf of Paddy Power Games, she added: “Karen’s displays are authentic though, in a show where most are gloriously manufactured, cheesy and manipulative. Karen’s response to praise from the judges during the VT was relatable and honest and would provide proof of her utter authenticity.”
“Her intrinsic modesty showed as she bit her lip and lowered her head in a cut-off to hide her face as she listened to the judges praise her, rather than keeping her face visible and performing over-kill expressions of joy for the camera. The praise made her go into meltdown, not any criticism, and her response was to hide rather than showboat as some of the others have done when they get good feedback.”
‘She allowed some of her unfiltered emotions to pour out’
Judi noted that during Karen’s “emotional outburst” following her waltz, viewers “witnessed Karen finally allowing her more spontaneous emotions to take over in an outpouring of tears, trust and love”.
“She placed a clawed hand over her face as though miming ripping off a mask, and it was then that she allowed some of her unfiltered emotions to pour out at last as she said, ‘I love this guy’,” she continued.
Judi insisted that Karen is a “body language winner already”. However, she believes these “switches of industrial-strength emotion will need harnessing by Carlos to power her to a series win rather than to make her a little volatile up against tungsten-talented dance machine Amber”.
This weekend, Karen will compete in the final alongside Amber Davies and George Clarke.
Read more: Strictly star Amber Davies shares ‘loud and clear message’ as she hits back at unfair backlash
Strictly Come Dancing 2025’s Grand Final is at 7pm this Saturday (December 20) on BBC One and BBC iPlayer
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