‘She’s not qualified to judge Strictly!’
With Strictly star Bruno Tonioli being stranded in the US due to the coronavirus pandemic, bookies have placed Cheryl’s odds at 1-2 to replace him, but despite her being a judge on The Greatest
Dancer, former Strictly Come
Dancing pro Kristina Rihanoff says the Geordie star, who trained with the Royal Ballet School as a child, isn’t right for the flagship BBC show.
Kristina – who has founded her own wellbeing centre called Soo Yoga with rugby star fiancé Ben Cohen – says, “Cheryl’s not qualified to judge Strictly – she couldn’t talk with expertise.
She may have taken ballroom dancing lessons as a kid and been on The Greatest Dancer, but that’s not enough.
“Bruno’s been there from the beginning and knows his stuff. Although Cheryl might be able to talk about emotions and musicality in dance, could she comment on hip action and posture in the foxtrot?”
And Kristina, 42, doesn’t think it would be fair on the celeb dancers. She adds, “It’s a a four-month journey for them. They appreciate the judges’ expert comments – Cheryl may not be able to give them that.”
But Kristina insists she’s still a big fan of Cheryl, after meeting her “years ago” behind the scenes at The X Factor, saying, “She’s a sweet person. She came to see me with Kimberley Walsh when I was dancing in my show with Robin Windsor in the West End and kindly Tweeted about it.
“But I’m passionate about Strictly after dancing on it for years – it’d be better if [former Strictly head judge]
Len Goodman took over Bruno’s judging role.”
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