'Strictly' semi to feature swing-a-thon

[dutchman]

The Strictly Come Dancing semi-final will feature the show's first ever swing-a-thon.



This year's semi-final will be split over three shows with the first airing on Friday, December 10 at 9pm. After performing one regular dance on the Friday show, all the couples will compete in the swing-a-thon.

During the competitive dance, head judge Len Goodman will eliminate pairings one at a time, depending on who the panel believe is performing the best. The couples must keep on dancing until they are voted out of the contest.

The first couple kicked off will pick up one point, the second couple two, the third couple three and so on. Those scores will be added to the total marks they picked up for their first dance.

The BBC production team have described the swing-a-thon as "the ultimate test of style and stamina". It has previously been used on the US version of the ballroom show, Dancing With The Stars.

All the Friday night scores will be combined with the marks from the Saturday show, before phonelines are opened for the public to vote for their favourite couple.

This year's final will feature three celebrities, so there will be a double elimination on the Sunday show, unless a contestant is forced to pull out with an injury.