EXCLUSIVE: Strictly Come Dancing legend Craig Revel Horwood has revealed the truth behind his strict judging style on the BBC show, and why “harsh with fair” is the way forward
Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood isn’t scared of getting cancelled.
He’s Strictly’s longest-serving judge, having been on the panel of the BBC One hit since 2004. After 20 years on the show, he’s become famed for his brutally honest judging style and the ballroom king believes being “harsh” and “fair” is the way forward.
Craig, who has teamed up with Fox’s Fabulous Chocolatey on their new Dubai Style pistachio biscuits, wants the celebs to know that Strictly it not going to be an “easy ride” and being too nice would be a “disservice” to them. He has now revealed the truth behind his strict judging style – and why he learned it from his own dance teachers.
He told Daily Star: “I certainly have to comment professionally on the dancing that I see, and what I try and do is give them the what’s gone wrong and the reason it’s gone wrong and how to fix it, because then they’re going to come back the following week well informed. And there’s nothing worse than misinformation.
“You know, my teachers always say, ‘Craig, your arms need sorting out. They are flailing. They are not in the right place. They’re not the right time. You need to sort that out’. I’ve got a lot of criticism about that, and had to work hard to make them better, you know.
He continued: “So for me, if my teachers hadn’t have been honest with me and being down to earth and said, ‘Okay, this is going wrong, and this is why it’s going on, but this is how you fix it’, you know. If you don’t do that, and if you’re sort of beating around the bush and lying to people, you know, saying, Oh, you’re really great when you’re not, I think is a disservice to that person.
“So for me, the first thing I do is always begin with what’s going wrong and negative, and then I’ll always try and back it up with a little bit of positive. I mean, I never used to do that, because it wasn’t ever any time, but now they may given the judges a little bit more speaking time, and I’m able to say, ‘Okay, well, this is the negative situation that can be fixed, but it needs hard work.
“This is the positive of getting you through to the next thing you know, or this you did very well. So you don’t need to worry about that side of it, but you do need to fix this’.”
The Strictly legend also feels he needs to speak for the fans watching at home. “I think it’s important for people at home that I speak for them as well. You know, I’m not, not a sycophant. I’m direct, because I was over in Australia, and I think a lot of people from Australia are very direct, and that can sound harsh sometimes, but I think being harsh with fair is like the way forward.
Admitting he’s not scared of cancel culture, he continued: “I guess the cancel culture doesn’t bother me in that way, because I’m always speaking honestly about what I’m saying and and then I challenge anyone to challenge me on the decisions I make, because I will have a backup for it. There’s a reason I speak like that. It’s because that’s what I see before me for one minute 30 [seconds] and I try and speak in layman’s terms for the nation, because they have a voice.
“At the time, I’m the judge up there, and I’m hoping to always speak honestly for people at home, as well as the contestants, you know, I think it’s really important that they know that dance isn’t easy and it’s not going to be an easy ride. And as soon as you think it’s going to be an easy ride, you’re failing.”
Craig said it’s “ludicrous” for anyone to expect 10s in the first week and that it’s “virtually impossible” to reach the level of dancing ability that the professions have in just a matter of weeks. “You have to understand that it’s taken all those professional dancers 10 years of training to reach the level that they’re at,” he said.
“To do that in three weeks is virtually impossible, you know. But there’s always, it’s never going to be perfect, is what I’m saying, you know. And to expect 10s in the first week is ludicrous.”
Craig also revealed that there will be some “exciting” changes to the show’s format when it returns later this year. “There’s a few little format changes coming up that are going to be really exciting,” he said. “I can’t wait for that, something new to look forward to with the new series as well.
And we’ve got a big surprise in store for the launch show. He added: “There’s going to be a big old judges number to begin with for the launch show, which I’m looking forward to doing, and completely different to anything we’ve done before, which will be equally good.”
Discussing his campaign with Fox’s Fabulous Chocolatey, he said: “I certainly won’t promote anything that I don’t enjoy myself. So I tried the biscuits before I said yes, and they’re absolutely gorgeous. And I thought, yeah, I could do this. They’re indulgent. They’re luxurious. I love them, and they’ve got like a little pistachio cream inside them, which is absolutely delicious, one of my favorite nuts, actually.
“I think we all need time out for ourselves, you know. And I think we forget about ourselves in a busy life, and particularly my life is like ridiculously busy. You know, just finished a one man show, which was sort of a daily occurrence. You know, work seven days a week, and you forget, actually, to take time out for yourself.
“This is just a way of having, you know, 15 minutes to yourself over a cup of tea and a couple of biscuits, which is what normal people do. But I don’t know that the whole campaign is to take you away from your present life. So the campaign was really based on the biscuits, sort of giving you a whole new lease of life. You feel like you’re in Dubai eating the most expensive chocolate. This was an affordable way to indulge.”
Craig Revel Horwood has teamed up with Fox’s Fabulous Chocolatey on their latest launch, the first Dubai Style cream-filled chocolate biscuits to launch in major supermarkets – bringing a taste of Middle Eastern luxury to supermarket aisles at just £2.65
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
