Alexandra's jive to judge Shirley: the best bits of Strictly Come Dancing 2017

So in the end it was Joe and Katya who lifted the Glitterball on Saturday, after one of the hardest-fought Strictly finals in years. It brought the curtain down on the 15^th series of Strictly Come Dancing, with impressive viewer numbers and a format that doesn’t seem to age. This year was no exception: the series was packed with showstopping dancing and gave us plenty of laughs along the way. I’ve whittled it down to my five favourite moments, but feel free to add yours in the comment box below.

Alexandra and Gorka’s jive

Every series needs a legendary jive, and whoever delivers it usually goes on to win the series. In 2015 everyone was talking about Jay and Aliona’s Pulp Fiction themed jive, until Ore and Joanne attempted to steal their jive crown with theirs in 2016. For me, this year’s trophy was won by Alexandra and Gorka in week four, and repeated in Saturday’s final – Alexandra totally captured the spirit of Tina Turner, and set the tone for the weeks of showstopping dances that followed. They may not have lifted the Glitterball, but their Jive will go down in Strictly history.

New head judge Shirley Ballas

Filling Len Goodman’s shiny ballroom shoes was always going to be a challenge; 15 years of “Sehvens” had made Len part of the Strictly furniture. But Queen of Latin Shirley Ballas wasn’t remotely fazed – she simply Cha Cha-ed in, took the top seat, and immediately made it her own. Her approach has been firm but fair: extra points for improvement on the previous week, and plenty of tips on how to perfect the technicalities of each dance. When she gave her first ten in week 4 with a yell of “It’s never too early for a ten from Shirley!”, it felt like she’d been there forever. Just what the Strictly doctor ordered.

Joe and Katya’s Argentine Tango

Argentine Tangos are very much a Strictly danger zone: most couples decide to give it a miss, on the basis that it’s technically demanding and very hard to do well. Those who do attempt it mostly stay traditional – it’s definitely not a dance to mess about with. Unless you’re choreographer extraordinaire Katya Jones, who is one of Strictly’s biggest risk-takers (see every dance with Ed Balls ever). She and Joe delivered an intense and brooding contemporary Argentine in the semi-finals, causing half the nation to put their back out trying to recreate the seesaw lift at the end.

Craig’s Bruno impression

The judging table was missing Bruno in Week 5 – he had Dancing With The Stars commitments in the US that week, or a week long date with swimwear model Matt Law, depending on your preferred source of news. Did anyone miss Bruno? Nope. His spirit lived on in Craig Revel-Horwood, who briefly removed his panto villain mask to do a brilliant impression of his fellow judge, complete with flailing arms, exuberant praise and a final falling over. It’s a side to Craig we’d definitely like to see more of – feel free to go away any time, Bruno.

Susan and Kevin’s quickstep to Bring Me Sunshine

For me, Susan and Kevin’s Morecambe and Wise tribute quickstep was the dance of the series. It might not have been the most technically proficient attempt we saw in 2017, but it was nevertheless 1 minute and 45 seconds of sheer, unbridled happiness. This dance was a huge nostalgia trip for anyone who grew up with Eric and Ernie on their telly, and clearly a special song for Susan too; Bring Me Sunshine was the first dance at the wedding of Susan and her wife, Lee.