Strictly Come Dancing: James Cracknell is moved to tears after judges slam his ‘lethargic’ debut

Strictly 2019: James Cracknell is moved to tears after judges slam his ‘lethargic’ debut and he finishes bottom of the leaderboard… as fans hit out at judges’ ‘harsh’ scoring

  • The Olympic rower, 47, performed a tango with pro Luba Mushtuk to the appropriately-titled Gold by Spandau Ballet 
  • James’ performance earned a mixed response from the judges, with Craig Revel-Horwood branding his moves ‘lethargic’
  • Meanwhile viewers took to social media to hit out at the show as they claimed the scoring had been inconsistent 

Strictly Come Dancing star James Cracknell appeared to wipe away tears after his debut performance was slammed by the judges on Saturday.

The Olympic rower, 47, took to the dance floor with pro Luba Musktuk to perform a Tango to Gold by Spandau Ballet, but was branded ‘lethargic’ by Craig Revel-Horwood.

It came as many viewers took to social media to slam the judge’s scoring, with several claiming that Lioness Alex Scott should have earned more points. 

 

Hard times: Strictly Come Dancing star James Cracknell appeared to wipe away tears after his debut performance was slammed by the judges on Saturday

Following his first dance, James appeared to be downcast as he exited the dancefloor with Luba, and host Claudia Winkleman asked if he was alright.

The sporting champion was silent at first, with Luba saying: ‘He did such a brilliant job. I’m really, really proud.’

Speaking about his proud parents who were watching on in the audience, James said: ‘The first thing my dad said to me after I was lucky enough to win the Olympics was ‘can you get a proper job now?’

Embattled: The Olympic rower, 47, appeared to be emotional as he left the dance floor, after his moves were branded 'lethargic'

Embattled: The Olympic rower, 47, appeared to be emotional as he left the dance floor, after his moves were branded ‘lethargic’

Passionate: James and Luba took to the dance floor with pro Luba Musktuk to perform a Tango to Gold by Spandau Ballet

Passionate: James and Luba took to the dance floor with pro Luba Musktuk to perform a Tango to Gold by Spandau Ballet

Struggling: Following his first dance, James appeared to be downcast as he exited the dancefloor with Luba, and host Claudia Winkleman asked if he was alright

Struggling: Following his first dance, James appeared to be downcast as he exited the dancefloor with Luba, and host Claudia Winkleman asked if he was alright

STRICTLY WEEK ONE LEADERBOARD

Kelvin Fletcher and Oti Mabuse: Samba to La Vida Es Un Carnaval by Celia Cruz – 32 points out of 40 

Karim Zeroual and Amy Dowden: Cha Cha Cha to If I Can’t Have You by Shawn Mendes – 31 points out of 40 

Michelle Visage and Giovanni Pernice: So Emotional by Whitney Houston – 30 points out of 40 

Dev Griffin and Dianne Buswell: Foxtrot to Build Me Up Buttercup by The Foundations – 30 points out of 40 

Saffron Barker and AJ Pritchard: Tango to Lips Are Moving by Meghan Trainor – 27 points out of 40 

Will Bayley and Janette Manrara: Quickstep to Pencil Full of Lead by Paolo Nutini – 26 points out of 40

Emma Barton and Anton Du Beke: Jive to Honey Honey by ABBA – 23 points out of 40

Mike Bushell and Katya Jones: Jive to Do You Love Me by The Contours – 22 points out of 40

Alex Scott and Neil Jones: Quickstep to I Get a Kick Out of You by Frank Sinatra – 21 points out of 40 

Catherine Tyldesley and Johannes Radebe: Viennese Waltz to I Got You Babe by Sonny and Cher – 20 points out of 40 

Emma Weymouth and Aljaž Škorjanec: She’s a Lady by Tom Jones – 19 points out of 40 

David James and Nadiya Bychkova: Foxtrot to Three Lions by Baddiel, Skinner and Lightning Seeds – 17 points out of 40 

Anneka Rice and Kevin Clifton: Cha Cha Cha to Gloria by Laura Branigan – 14 points out of 40 

Chris Ramsey and Karen Hauer: Cha Cha Cha to Juice by Lizzo – 13 points out of 40

James Cracknell and Luba Mushtuk: Tango to Gold by Spandau Ballet – 11 points out of 40 

His performance earned a mixed reception from the panel, with Craig only offering a score of two points.

He added; ‘Your posture posture is your main concern in this dance. You were hunched over Luba sadly. On top of that your bottom was sticking way out. You need to tuck that baby under.

‘It lacked drive, you need to put a much energy as you do into rowing into your body.’

Supportive: The sporting champion was silent at first, with Luba saying: 'He did such a brilliant job. I'm really, really proud'

Supportive: The sporting champion was silent at first, with Luba saying: ‘He did such a brilliant job. I’m really, really proud’

Struggling: His performance earned a mixed reception from the panel, with Craig only offering a score of two points. They earned a total of 11 points out of 40

Struggling: His performance earned a mixed reception from the panel, with Craig only offering a score of two points. They earned a total of 11 points out of 40

Motsi Mabuse offered some optimism by saying that ‘athletes never give up’ and was adamant he would come back stronger the following week.

Bruno added: ‘At times it looked like you were concentrating so hard on getting it right you were dancing on your own. Next time perform it. Deep breath, come out and wow us.’ 

Regardless James scored just 11 points out of 40 and finished bottom of the leaderboard.

James joined the 14 other celebrities who made their long-awaited debut on the dancefloor.

Upset: But many viewers were unhappy with the scoring throughout the show - and Alex Scott and particular - and took to Twitter to share their views

Upset: But many viewers were unhappy with the scoring throughout the show – and Alex Scott and particular – and took to Twitter to share their views

But many viewers were unhappy with the scoring throughout the show and took to Twitter to share their views.  

One wrote: ‘These judges are already winding me up!’ while another added: ‘I think it was absolutely brilliant for a first episode of the series but the scoring was a bit all over the place for me.’

A third also tweeted: ‘This is the first time ever I’m committing to a full series of #Strictly and I’m a) amazing by the details the judges notice and b) baffled by some of their scoring. At least standards and expertise are still key.’ 

A fourth also tweeted: ‘I thought @ChrisRamsety did really well! Judges comments disappointed me… and we’re back!’ 

The first live show saw all 15 celebrities perform a debut dance that was scored by the judges, but the public vote will not open until next week.

Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday 28th September on ITV. 

Back soon: Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday 28th September on ITV

Back soon: Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday 28th September on ITV

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