Hollins and Whittle battle it out in Strictly showdown

Written on December 19th, 2009 by

By Genevieve Hassan
Entertainment reporter, BBC News

Strictly Come Dancing finalists Chris Hollins and Ricky Whittle are preparing to battle it out to be crowned king of the ballroom later.

Bookmakers have made Hollyoaks actor Whittle the favourite to win, with odds of 4/6, compared to Hollins, on 11/10.

BBC Sports presenter Hollins, who was widely expected to leave in the opening weeks, said "never in a million years" did he think he would reach the final.

The show starts on BBC One at 1835 GMT, with the results at 2040 GMT.

Through the series, Hollins has been more popular with the public than with the judges.

‘Different flavours’

Asked whether he deserved to win, the presenter said he was trying not to think of the show as a competition.

"I’ve seen it as us having lots of fun, trying to make sure I don’t make myself look like a complete wally and put in a performance we both enjoy.

"Every dance we thought would be our last.

"There is no doubting that Ricky is in a class of his own," he continued.

"If you speak to any of the professionals they say he’s probably the best male celebrity they’ve ever had – but it is a dance competition and it’s also a TV programme."

Ola Jordan, Hollins’s dance partner added: "If people enjoy watching and voting for us we’re doing something right – maybe it’s not the perfect technique, but Chris has definitely been improving and putting in loads of hard work."

Speaking in defence of his rival, Whittle said: "Me and Chris are bringing different flavours to the table.

"I think it’s quite insulting for Chris that people are saying that he can’t dance – he wouldn’t be here if he couldn’t.

"Chris can dance, he can entertain, he’s got great moves, he’s got great personality and he’s going to be a massive challenge.

"If I don’t bring my ‘A’ game and perform four great dances he’s walking away with this," he said.

Whittle added that both finalists should be "very proud" of their achievements, considering they have both had to juggle full-time jobs while competing.

Biggest fears

The actor has spent most of his time training in Liverpool with his dance partner, Natalie Lowe, due to his Hollyoaks filming commitments.

He revealed that the pair would be performing two dances chosen by their fans in the final show – the quickstep and the cha cha cha.

"It’s 100% public vote so there’s not point doing a dance we enjoyed that the public didn’t connect with," he explained.

He also said he hoped the "Superman pants" he had been wearing during training would continue being his good luck charm, quipping: "I hope there’s no kryptonite out there on the night!"

Lowe, who appeared on five series of the show in her native Australia, added: "I’ve taken the title home in Australia and this is my new goal that I’ve set for myself: I want to go all they way."

Meanwhile Hollins said his biggest fears for the final were forgetting his dance steps and freezing on the live show.

"I just don’t want to be humiliated," he said.

"I’ve got to concentrate on what I’m doing so that people say, ‘yes, he deserved his place in the final’. That’s all I care about.

"But I think on the night, with a bit of adrenaline pumping, we’re just going to go for it."

The finale to the series will also see host Bruce Forsyth will team up with judge Alesha Dixon to perform a duet of the Frank Sinatra standard Something’s Gotta Give.

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