Dance X, Saturday 6.40pm, BBC1

Posted by Helen Jennings

Our rating:
Enough enough enough enough enough! When will this reality TV dance-a-thon-and-on end? I see no light at the end of TV’s current long, dark and rather badly dressed tunnel.

Come Dancing, now that had class. It was old-school and showed skill. And Angela Rippon’s gowns were, for want of a better expression, breathtaking. Strictly Come Dancing is OK. Bruce Forsyth adds panache and we get to watch celebrities weep in training over their woeful foxtrots and freestyles. Dancing on Ice? Well, I think it’s actually treason to slag off Torvill and Dean, but their talents aside, the show is a double serving of terrible with Phillip Schofield on top.

And what has the current crop of leotard-clad programming dredged up from the bottom of the stage school barrel? Baby Ballroom – shudder – don’t even get me started. And Dance X. This Saturday on the latter, Team Arlene and Team Bruno’s highly contrived battle of the sweat-bands gets serious. The choreography-off is now four shows in and hotting up considerably, as the hopeless hopefuls are picked off one by one. Meanwhile, our host Ben Shephard summons up all of his GMTV-honed charm to brave the short hemlines, attention spans and tempers back stage. It’s hideous.

Now, I know we all wanted to be in Fame when we grew up (come on boys, admit it) but its time most of these contestants got over it and stopped bothering the limelight. And it’s also time TV bosses came up with a new way to torture us with light entertainment of a Saturday night – because this is one viewer who has seen one salsa step too many.

Comments

[Xena]

Just wanted to point out that shows like 'X Factor', 'Strictly Come Dancing' and 'Dance X' are NOT reality shows, they are talent shows, and as such have been around since the 1970s, (does anyone remember Opportunity Knocks and New Faces?). The term 'reality show' refers to shows like 'Big Brother' and 'I'm a Non-Entity Get me Out of Here' and these shows are a relatively new phenomenon. Just wanted to point this out as this tendency to lump all these phone-vote type shows together under one banner has been really irritating me.

[Jo]

I am a dancer and i work for a dance company! I think Strictly Come Dancing is fantastic, it has raised the awareness of dancing and has encouraged so many more people to start dance classes. Many companies say the their intake of people has doubled mainly due to the show!
Now, i still havent worked out the purpose of Dance X and the singing bit seems to be rather lame but it is still getting people into the sport and is better than films about murder and fighting!
Now Baby Ballroom, is kinda cute but its obvious that the producers have told the judges not to say anything too harsh in their comments. Plus it is a insight into the reality of these kids lives, every weekend they are out there competing, quite often for their county and country!
So therefore keep bringing out the dance shows just don't let them clash like they do every Saturday!

[sandyb]

I can't see what Dance X is trying to achieve even though I watch it. as for Baby Ballroom, this is parents trying to get children to do what they really wanted to do. Bib Brother wouldn't waste my time, wtched it once what a load of trash

[katy]

theres nuthin wrong with a bit of damcin n its entertainment so y dus it really matter that some of the choreoraphers are a bit older than the usual ones!
katy age 13

[Rachel]

Well i like it!

[Jane]

the show is pretty awfulal. I think the choreography is outdated and apart from Ashlee i dont think any of them can really sing, are they hoping to come up with a hearsay or similar? as im still not sure what the point of the show is, i've actually seen better at the local school productions. Dance X is the extremely distant relative (twice removed) of the brilliant 'so you think you can dance' (rerun of final nxt sat on livings hangover tv). All of the peep on the show have got talent but this is a highly innaproporiate vehicle to showcase it in, surely there are younger less dated talented choreographers out there?

[inverclyde22]

The reason there's so many reality shows like Dance X, Baby Ballroom, and the awful Big Brother, is because they are dirt cheap to produce and the telephone vote lines raise money.

I was interested to hear David Puttnam, one of the big cheeses at Channel 4 state how much he hates Big Brother, but it raises so much revenue for the station that they now can't afford ro take it off, unless there's something better to replace it.

[inverclyde22]

The reason there's so many reality shows like Dance X, Baby Ballroom, and the awful Big Brother, is because they are dirt cheap to produce and the telephone vote lines raise money.

I was interested to hear David Puttnam, one of the big cheeses at Channel 4 state how much he hates Big Brother, but it raises so much revenue for the station that they now can't afford ro take it off, unless there's something better to replace it.