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Strictly stars AJ and Curtis Pritchard clash over Helen Skelton’s Cabaret routine: 'She looked scared' 

What did you think about the Cabaret routine? 

aj curtis insider pic
Emmy Griffiths
TV & Film Editor
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Strictly Come Dancing’s Musicals Week was certainly one to remember, with the remaining contestants doing their all to stay in the competition with some seriously memorable numbers. 

MORE DIANNE AND JOE: Inside Strictly's Dianne Buswell's first London flat with Joe Sugg where they fell in love

While Kym Marsh sadly went home, Helen Skelton and Will Mellor topped the leaderboard - with many saying Helen and her dance partner Gorka Marquez deserved a perfect 40 score for their couple’s choice number. We sat down with former Strictly pros AJ and Curtis Pritchard to discuss the latest episode and see if they agreed… 

WATCH: AJ and Curtis break down Musicals Week 

Chatting to HELLO! for the semifinal insider, Curtis most certainly wasn’t enthusiastic about Helen and Gorda’s performance. He explained: "So I think she's a fantastic dancer. She's really good. She's got a lot of talent and a lot of skill. And she can really get into a character. 

"The performance that she just did was not one of my favourites. I felt like she didn't get into character and she looked scared." 

helen skleton routine

What did you make of Helen's routine?

AJ joked: "I can imagine Twitter right now!" 

Curtis added: "I don’t mean it in any bad way whatsoever. Cabaret is meant to be really sexy and use real core strength." 

His brother interrupted, saying: "You can’t say she didn’t have core strength! When Gorka did that press-up, she just split on perfect timing." 

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Curtis continued: "The thing is, I felt like she looked a little bit scared on her face. I feel a little bit relaxed on the face, which would have given it a slight smirk, which would have given it sex appeal, would have given it more of a cabaret feel. The dance itself was good. I just felt like she could have relaxed and eased up on her face slightly to give her a more natural feel… It was good for what it was. It was the polar opposite of anything done that night… I just didn’t love it." 

helen gorka

Do you want Helen and Gorka to win?

So what does she need to work on? AJ said: "I think if I was in the training room with my partner at this stage in the competition, it’s explained that, yes it’s a dance competition, but we’re staying in because people are emotionally attached to you. Every routine needs to be you enjoying it and getting into that character. Then people will be drawn in and vote for you. At the end of the day, if you’re having the time of your life, people will fall head over heels for you." 

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