Tasha got 10s, but Paul Merson was the star

Week four of Strictly saw Tasha and Aljaž expand their lead at the top of the leaderboard with the first 10s of the series, while Paul and Pete reached new heights thanks to the powers of the quickstep. At the bottom, Punam and Nick look to be contenders for the Dreaded Dance-Off.

The Results Show is on Sunday on BBC One at 7.20pm, with music from Snow Patrol – and a pro routine to Taylor Swift. Not in person – she’s probably at home with a Lemsip recovering from the Eras tour – but it is choreographed by Mandy Moore (not that one, the other one – her social accounts, wonderfully use the handle @NopeNotHer), Swift’s Eras choreographer, and also a longtime choreographer on Strictly’s American sister show, Dancing with the Stars.

I’ll be back next Saturday at 6.25pm. Have a lovely week till then!

See below for how the night unfolded

08:27 PM BST

All change (well, except for Tasha) on the leaderboard

Tasha and Aljaž continue their deserved reign over the top of leaderboard but it’s all change from there on out. Punam and Nick are at the bottom – a real shame for them both after last week’s success and ongoing injury, respectively – and Wynne, Jamie and Montell have taken Sarah and JB’s places at the top of the board. Sarah and Vito are going to need all of Miranda Hart’s social media support after their surprisingly low (for them!) 27.

The week 4 leaderboard:

Tasha and Aljaž: 39
Wynne and Katya: 34
Jamie and Michelle: 34
Montell and Johannes: 33
Chris and Dianne: 30
JB and Amy: 30
Shayne and Nancy: 30
Pete and Jowita: 29
Sam and Nikita: 28
Sarah and Vito: 27
Paul and Karen: 23
Nick and Luba: 21
Punam and Gorka: 20

08:18 PM BST

Three 10s for Tasha and Aljaž’s extraordinary Charleston

I really hoped we’d seen the last of selfie sticks since UK tourist attractions banned them – but here are Tasha and Aljaž bringing them into their Charleston. And wow, what a Charleston. It was so good I am now absentmindedly googling selfie sticks on eBay.

Any thoughts that Tasha might be a ballroom queen only faded away as she brought buckets of charisma to an energetic routine that would tax the Duracell bunny. Extraordinary elegance, professional lifts and tumbles topped with a smile that looked straight off the Duchess of Cambridge. “I can’t fault it,” said Shirley simply – a 10 from her. Craig tried to find something wrong in her left fault, but ended with what was deserved: “A-ma-zing.”  Tasha and Aljaž’s lead gets even stronger. What a couple to watch!

Craig: 9
Motsi: 10
Shirley: 10
Anton: 10

Kat’s score: 9

08:11 PM BST

Pete and Jowita’s tattoo-themed quickstep gives them their best score

Goodness me, the quickstep might resuscitate two dancers tonight! This rockabilly character and tattoo-themed routine to The Jam resulted in a great improvement in confidence and moves from Pete – well done Jowita. He’s still looking a bit panicked in his face and counting away, but the way he swept Jowita across the floor was wonderful. The judges want more consistency from him to reflect his potential. “I don’t want you to run out of weeks,’ says Anton. One thing that has been consistent is Pete’s podcast co-host, I’m a Celebrity winner Sam Thompson, who has been in the audience each week. Really lovely – and the judges give Pete a very significant lift in scoring from what he’s had previously.

Craig: 7
Motsi: 7
Shirley: 8
Anton: 7

Kat’s score: 7

08:03 PM BST

Sam and Nikita’s samba is out-scorched by Craig

It’s always a joy to get to see Nikita really let go, and tonight he shows off so much prowling energy that he nearly trips off his chair. Unfortunately, while Sam is all swan from the neck up, you can really see her paddling away: she looks stiff and uncomfortable in this samba. There is so much melting rotation needed in these moves – as Sam explained later: “I’ve never really felt my curves before.”  Totally fair! The whole dance was overshadowed by Craig’s borrowing of Shirley’s rather patronising phrase, “Hang on, you might learn something.” He’s on fire tonight!

Craig: 7
Motsi: 7
Shirley: 7
Anton: 7

Kat’s score: 6

07:53 PM BST

Montell and Johannes’s magical waltz get Craig’s first “gawwwjus”

Something magical happened in the rehearsal room this week: Montell has really given in to the softness and teamwork needed for the Viennese waltz. Wow, Montell, WOW! Johannes is leading her with real ease – his pupil knows what she’s doing now and can be led without being clamped into frame. What a lovely, graceful waltz. “That was my favourite dance of the night,” says Anton in wonder. “Gawwwjus,” says Craig – his first of the evening. How lovely to see Montell embrace ballroom – as Shirley says, a wonderful evening for them both. This is a real shot in the arm for Montell and Johannes, and the thrilled faces of her Gladiators friends, out of costume and in their out-out gear, is a further boost.

Craig: 8
Motsi: 8
Shirley: 8
Anton: 9

Kat’s score: 8

07:46 PM BST

Chris and Dianne make Men At Work look like classical art

Once again, Chris and Dianne destroy any excuse I have for not being a dancer (except for my general lack of rhythm, inclination, current position on my sofa etc etc). I will continue to shake my head whenever Shayne talks about being scared about a dance when Chris does this entire routine blind and swings Dianne through a series of lifts with all the ease of a master sweetmaker manipulating boiling toffee. Incredible. You can feel the emotion from the judges before they go into offering critiques about clompy steps. In this week’s Strictly Diary for the Telegraph, Chris talked about being totally exhausted – he wrung himself out even more in this week’s salsa. “I feel like I’ve fallen off a horse and been dragged for two miles,” he tells Claudia. Those lifts though, extraordinary – and reflected in the scores.

Craig: 6
Motsi: 8
Shirley: 8
Anton: 8

Kat’s score: 8

07:37 PM BST

JB phones it in in uncomfortable rumba

In the VT, JB’s wife jokily gave him permission for the passion needed for a good rumba, but this didn’t come across. Was he uncomfortable? He all but disappeared.

Performing her first rumba on the show (and dazzling accordingly), Amy came across like the celebrity while he dutifully shadowed her across the floor like a camera operator running a spotlight. I’m a bit worried for JB after this dance but the scores should keep them both safe for now.

Craig: 7
Motsi: 8
Shirley: 7
Anton: 8

Kat’s score: 7

07:30 PM BST

Paul shows up as an actual dancer!

Well colour me surprised: Paul Merson is a delightful quickstepper! This is like those moments in films when a hard man shyly confesses to really enjoying watercolours – well taught, Karen. Anton praises his lack of irony, and taking it seriously – and fair play, this dance comes across like someone who enjoys ballroom and is getting out of the lower levels through serious homework. “Progression!” chants Craig. Having predicted them in the bottom two this week on dance and song alone, I would now be rather surprised if they don’t make it through. We love a trier who falls in love with dance – and Paul’s score puts him above Nick and Punam.

Craig: 4
Motsi: 6
Shirley: 6
Anton: 7

Kat’s score: 7

07:20 PM BST

Fatigue catches out Punam after Movie Week high

Punam won the judges and audience over last week. Her Bollywood Couples Choice with Gorka showed heart, skill and passion – this week’s jive saw her go back a step. Her kicks and flicks had the energy of a late-night student kickline to New York New York. As the author Justin Myers said, “Oh it’s that week where they all realise how knackered they are.” Sensing dance-off danger, Gorka quickly put in a veiled appeal to voters by reminding us that Punam is a GP and has never performed before – let’s see how this turns out for them both.

Craig: 4
Motsi: 5
Shirley: 5
Anton: 6

Kat’s score: 5

07:12 PM BST

Business as usual as Wynne and Katya’s tango thrills judges

Wynne and Katya seem to have been aiming for Wolf of Wall Street but end up rather closer to home. Stomping around the floor, boot-faced, clutching a ridiculous suitcase, Wynne showed big Budget Day energy, but the judges love it – and him – and any excuse for silliness. “The espresso’s kicked in I see,” says Craig, arching an eyebrow high enough that Wynne dissolved into uncontrollable church giggles while Tess desperately tried to smooth things over and make sure everyone knows that was not a subtext about illegal drugs. Craig had already asked Anton how he managed to keep it up all night – at this rate, the Strictly innuendo rate will be at Carry On levels.

Craig: 8
Motsi: 9
Shirley: 9
Anton: 8

Kat’s score: 8

07:02 PM BST

Jamie’s unrecognisable in a flashy, fabulous salsa

Hang on, who’s this? Smiling and confident, the usually rather beige Jamie appears to have had his winter Vitamin D injection early. May he channel the confident energy of an 18-to-30 holiday rep with a 2-4-1 offer on shots to flog for the rest of the series.

Having a character to play really helps Jamie on the floor. His dancing is huge fun to watch, and he swings Michelle around the floor with the expertise of Tom Cruise whipping up something lethal in the film Cocktail. “Please dance like that for the rest of the show – please,” says Anton, and we all echo this.

Craig: 8
Motsi: 9
Shirley: 9
Anton: 8

Kat’s score: 8

06:54 PM BST

This looked like too soon a return for Nick and his knee

I was so looking forward to Nick and Luba’s Charleston, but on seeing them dressed as prisoners from Paddington 2, I was reminded of RuPaul snapping, “I don’t want to see any f—ing H&M” at a poorly dressed contestant in Drag Race UK. Some of the music and wardrobe choices in Movie Week can be tenuous at best but it’s a shame that there wasn’t something more iconic, especially given that Nick has been scorched by injury over the last couple of weeks.

Understandably, this is a very slow Charleston, but Nick goes at it gamely – full of the charm and personality that we know and love from DIY SOS. The judges are kind but this isn’t the massive return that he needs. Given his knee still looks uncomfortable the audience may decide to cut him free. Lovely to see him and Luba back in any case.

Craig: 4
Motsi: 6
Shirley: 5
Anton: 6

Kat’s score: 5

06:47 PM BST

Mystifying scores greet Sarah and Vito’s foxtrot

Bench choreo is back for Sarah and Vito’s foxtrot! Sarah being a Billie Eilish fan was not something I had on my bingo card but it turns out it’s the rather insipid ballad Birds of a Feather, which is a family favourite. “It’s about my family and my little one,” she says in the VT, clutching a piece of paper with a child’s bird collage on it. Sarah is very private about her home life so this glimpse was rather moving.

Her dress gives me stressful flashbacks to the stranglehold Miss Selfridge had over school discos in the 1990s – it looks like it would crease if you breathed on it – but her smooth foxtrot with Vito was leagues away from clanking teens doing Saturday Night by Whigfield en masse. A very high-school critique from Craig: “You were trying too hard.” What’s anyone supposed to do with that? “We wouldn’t critique someone like this is they couldn’t achieve it,” says Motsi, hopefully soothing many ruffled feathers in the process, before ruffling them again with an underscoring. Perhaps the producers think Sarah is doing too well and needs lower scoring to make her “jourrrrney” more exciting?

Craig: 6
Motsi: 7
Shirley: 7
Anton: 7

Kat’s score: 8

06:35 PM BST

Shayne and Nancy aim for sublime, just manage lime

“I’d like a little more use from your arms,” says Motsi. Yes, and the rest. I cannot warm to Shayne and the lime green ensemble he’s wearing is no help. Throughout his cha cha, he has the attitude of the office grump who’s been forced to go out and get someone’s birthday Colin from M&S. Does he enjoy dancing? Does he think it’s a bit naff? Is he thinking ahead to his Post-Strictly Career Jump? I can’t work it out. “It’s scary,” he mutters a few times. Shayne, Chris is performing blind and manages to look a bit more excited.

Craig: 7
Motsi: 8
Shirley: 7
Anton: 8

Kat’s score: 7

That’s what I think, but what about you? Let me know your scores and thoughts in the comments, but a warning: if you’re still going, “Well, it’s all a bit rubbish” then I’m afraid that’s very much a launch show comment. It’s week 4 – you’re a fan. Give in to it.

Novelist Marian Keyes, at least, loved loved loved it:

06:05 PM BST

Week 4’s dances and songs

Did I mention how much I’m looking forward to Nick and Luba’s Paddington Charleston? Please be good: that film series is so wholesome and uplifting, and we could use a dose of that.

Paul and Karen looked odds on to leave this week: their quickstep to Fred Astaire is too straight a combination for them to steal attention and votes from the better dancers. Chris and Dianne’s salsa to Men at Work looks like the entertainment of the night – but when it comes to scores, anything’s possible.

Montell and Johannes: Viennese Waltz – Nobody Gets Me by SZA
Punam and Gorka: Jive – 2 Be Loved (Am I Ready) by Lizzo
Sam and Nikita: Samba – Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira
Sarah and Vito: Foxtrot – Birds of a Feather by Billie Eilish
Tasha and Aljaž: Charleston – Unhealthy by Anne-Marie and Shania Twain
Chris and Dianne: Salsa – Down Under by Men at Work
Jamie and Michelle: Salsa – Danza Kuduro by Don Omar and Lucenzo
JB and Amy: Rumba – You Might Need Somebody by Kara Marni
Paul and Karen: Quickstep – I Won’t Dance by Fred Astaire
Pete and Jowita: Quickstep – Town Called Malice by The Jam
Shayne and Nancy: Cha Cha – Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use) by Sub Sub feat Melanie Williams
Wynne and Katya: Tango – Money, Money, Money by ABBA
Nick and Luba: Charleston – Rain on the Roof from Paddington 2

05:50 PM BST

Chris’s Strictly Diary: ‘A seven from Craig? That’s a 12 from anyone else’

Chris and Dianne got their best score yet in Movie Week with their 30-point Wayne’s World jive. This week, they’re doing a salsa to Men at Work’s glorious Eighties cheese-fest Down Under.

“My Australian compadre is so excited that she’s even got me doing kangaroo jumps, which I don’t believe are authentic salsa steps but they make her happy, so why not,” he writes.

“I was hoping that the salsa would allow for a bit more of a chilled week, but it turns out that the salsa requires full energy once again and has more bloody lifts than Canary Wharf. We’ve been practising hard, and I’ve only dropped her seven times. So far anyway…”

Read Chris’s full diary here.

05:35 PM BST

The nights are drawing in and so’s the competition

Speaking of icons, this week Strictly introduced Icons Week to celebrate its 20th anniversary. On November 2nd (also my birthday, which I will now be renaming Icons Week, apologies to absolutely no one), each couple will be themed around a famous name from the music industry – annoyingly, Jamie and Michelle’s Elton John quickstep from Movie Week could absolutely have been done then instead.

But who knows if they’ll make it that far? It’s a strong field and a close one – a number of tied scores meant that their very respectable 30 still only left them just four spots away from Toyah and Neil who were eliminated in the Dreaded Dance-Off.

Tasha and Aljaž lead for another week with 34, with Sarah and Vito, Punam and Gorka, and Shayne and Nancy tied on 33 – week one’s leaders JB and Amy are just behind on 32. At the other end of the board, and with some real work to do before audience goodwill peters out, Pete and Jowita scored 26, while Paul and Karen scored 19 and survived the dance-off.

05:07 PM BST

Welcome to week 4: Nick’s back in the game!

Nick Knowles’ health has been dicier than most DIY SOS projects in their “before” phase. He was signed off last weekend’s show with injury, having had a separate injury in week two, and this week it has been severe enough that their dance wasn’t even included with the others when they were announced on Thursday.

What a genuinely lovely surprise then that they will be back on stage for week four – and performing the Paddington 2 Charleston that they would have performed for Movie Week. Until this news broke on last night’s It Takes Two, I had assumed this would be curtains for Nick and Luba, and at best, we might see them back in a group dance later in the series, or returning in 2025 if Nick was able. The prospect of seeing Nick and Luba, both hopefully wearing blue duffel coats and enormous hats, is incredibly cheering. Lovely to have them back!

And what time is the show on tonight? 6.20pm on BBC One.