Judges’ plaudits might not be enough to save Seann and Katya
seriously. It was pretty obvious from the outset that every detail of the pair’s performance was designed to be as sexless as possible.
The song, Bills, by Lunchmoney Lewis, was about money problems rather than love and the set was a pizza parlour, and a naff brightly-coloured one at that, rather than a sexy little Italian you’d go to on a second date. Both Walsh and Jones were oozing cheesy, exaggerated grins and slapstick moves, and the jaunty nature of the Charleston meant that their hands were busy flapping around, rather than doing too much touching.
But, miraculously, it went pretty well. If we didn’t know what we know, it would have felt like the good clean fun that we expect from comedians on Strictly. Darcey Bussell praised the routine’s “strong vibrant character”, Bruno Tonioli said it was “manic in a good way”, Shirley Ballas said it was “totally entertaining” and even Craig
‘It was pretty obvious that every detail of the pair’s performance was designed to be as sexless as possible’
Revel-Horwood said they had done “really well”.
In their post-dance analysis, Katya gushed that it had been “an amazing week”, but we have to assume she meant the dancing, and not all the publicity.
Of course, just because the judges were happy doesn’t mean the public will be. Based on their dance alone, Seann and Katya deserve to go through – but with their routine being called by some “the Charleston of shame” before they’d even put those cute stripy outfits on, it might not be enough.
If the public turn against them, it could be good news for the dancers who failed to light up the stage this week. According to the panel, Graeme Swann was “a bit flat-footed”, Kate Silverton’s “dance belonged behind the news desk” and Katie Piper, who came bottom on the score board, had “a few hiccups”. Meanwhile, Stacey Dooley, Ashley Roberts and Vick Hope all did well, so should be safe, regardless of how the public feel about cheating comics and dancers. AS A seasoned comedy writer, Shaun Pye is accustomed to mining personal experiences to get laughs.
However, his latest subject is so raw that he initially thought it was a step too far for a sitcom.
There She Goes, which airs on BBC Four on Tuesday, takes an unflinchingly honest look at the struggles that Pye and his family have endured raising his 12-year-old daughter.
She was born in 2006 with a genetic condition so rare it is still undiagnosed. It has left her unable to talk and with the mental age of a 12- to 18-month-old.
The series stars David Tennant as Pye – called Simon in the show – and Jessica Hynes as his wife. Pye’s daughter, called Rosie on screen but not her real name, is played by Miley Locke.
Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph, Pye said there were moments when watching scenes from his life almost overwhelmed him.
“There were a couple of times I had to leave the set because David and Jessica recreated certain scenes so vividly that I did find it quite hard to watch,” said Pye, whose writing credits include Have I Got News For You.
“There is one scene early on where I just had to go for a walk because it was too raw and that was very difficult.”
Pye wanted the series to be an unsanitised look at raising a child with severe learning difficulties. As such, he admits he is a bit nervous about how it will be received by viewers.
“My daughter has watched the show and she just adores it,” he said. “Whenever Miley is on screen she makes me rewind and watch it over again. She recognises her character. She couldn’t care less about the boring bits where the grown-ups are talking. So her review’s good at least.
“Why shouldn’t someone with a learning disability, or some sort of genetic disorder, why shouldn’t their experiences be represented on television?” he said.
His wife was supportive and has been involved in the writing process. The couple quickly settled upon a key rule: everything in the show had to be based on real events. “Funny things happen in real life,” said Pye.