With the final just hours away, the celebrities are upping their game in ahead of their final bid to win Strictly Come Dancing.
It’s been an emotional week that saw Will Mellor collapse under bad feedback from the judges and get sent home, while Fleur East and Molly Rainford put up a fierce fight, Helen Skelton remained stoic, while Hamza Yassin opened the floodgates.
All four finalists were in floods of tears during their final interviews before the finale.
It’s been an emotional series but these tears, the body language performed as they delivered them and their emotional cues that prompted them, give some intriguing clues about which celeb might be holding that glitterball aloft after the finale, our body language expert Judi James has revealed.
Molly Rainford – Laughing tears
Molly shed tears and laughed at the same time. Her tears also prompted her to speak more, rather than less.
They were prompted by her relative’s messages and the memories of how they had supported her throughout her career, suggesting dedication and ambition.
Molly started to laugh and to babble but she also showed inner strength when Carlos tried to pull her in for a hug of support but she remained upright, refusing to look to him for comfort.
Her tears revealed the kind of inner steel we’ve glimpsed during her dance-offs.
Emotion makes her stronger, not weaker. Her determination alone could see her in the final two.
Hamza Yassin – Hedgehog tears
Hamza cried nearly all the way through his interview, suggesting emotions that might have been bottled up previously.
He also curled into a hedgehog-like ball, dropping his head and placing a hand over his face as he cried, suggesting he sees tears as a sign of weakness rather than something to show off for effect.
He was totally comfortable with Jowita’s nurturing support though.
She handed him the whole box of tissues and he leant right into her for support as he cried. Hamza seems like the likeliest winner but is he too much of a softie?
He should be a cert for the final two but his tears hint he might just lack that competitiveness that he might need to win.
Helen Skelton – Resilient tears
Helen’s tears showed how far she has come in terms of dealing with her emotions and showing resilience.
She sat forward, watching her relative’s messages closely, pulling her nose and wiping her eye in a bid to control them.
She dabbed and she blotted and she did allow Gorka to pull her in under his arm for a cuddle but something about her facial expression and the way she rallied to keep talking firmly suggested the kind of strength and solid determination that could power her through to a win.
Fleur East – Shared tears for the end of the series
These two were already sobbing when the interview started, with Fleur cuddled into Vito, supporting him rather than the other way round.
It was their own dances that made them cry although they sat with their heads pushed together for her relative’s VT.
Both their faces were contorted and the hankies were in use again. They seem to have truly adored working together and getting through all the challenges and are already mourning the end of the show.
A win would clearly delight them but the power of their relationship and their fiery dances really do seem to have offered them a strong emotional reward already.
