'Sensation of a show' - review of Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour 2022 at AO Arena in Manchester

30.01.2022 - 01:15 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk

With a queue snaking what felt like half way around Manchester, it was clear that a pandemic putting a pause on the live shows of Strictly Come Dancing had done nothing to lose it any of it's die-hard fans.

It may have been two painful years in the waiting but Strictly was BACK dah-ling........ and with the phenomenal line-up of Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice; John Whaite and Johannes Radebe; Max George and Katya Jones; Maisie Smith and Kai Widdrington; Rhys Stephenson and Nancy Xu; Tilly Ramsay and Nikita Kuzmin and Sara Davies and Aljaž Skorjanec - well, it was bound to be simply FAB-U-LOUS.

And fabulous it was.

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The judges brought belly laughs in their plenty, seeming more like a treble act of comedians at times, the pro-dancers wowed with their expertise and professional dancer Janette Manrara commanded the arena in her role as sequinned trouser-suit clad presenter.

Here's how the show unfolded:

John Whaite & Johannes Radebe

Chef John Whaite and professional dance partner Johannes Radebe kicked off the show with an electric paso doble with a Pirates of the Caribbean theme.

Their spectacular performance, was dubbed "explosive" by judges who all rewarded the pair with a perfect ten - giving them a solid 30/30.

My personal favourite of theirs was when they took to the stage in matching sheer white shirts with sequined shoulders and white pants to perform to You Got The Love.

And boy, did they have the love. The support for the pair was tangible - with people all around me exclaiming how much they loved them and going wild when they took to the floor.

Judge Craig Revel Horwood said he kept forgetting John