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Strictly Come Dancing viewers reckon they’ve found a dark horse of the series—and we agree she’s the one to watch.
Tonight, the BBC dance extravaganza aired its first live show of the series, with all 15 couples – including latecomer Amber Davies with Nikita Kuzmin – taking to the floor.
It was all the things you’d expect from Strictly, whether that be Stefan Dennis dancing to the Neighbours theme tune, or La Voix sitting on a pink pony for her Chappell Roan American Smooth.
However, it seemed they saved the best until last…
Former Lioness Karen Carney, 38, and her professional partner Carlos Gu, 32, left everyone stunned with their energetic jive to One Way or Another by Blondie as they closed the night, donning sparkly shorts and sports attire.
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The routine was packed with flicks and kicks, and no one could believe the amount of attack Karen gave it, especially since the footwork was the opposite of what she’s used to as a footballer.
But after blowing us all away, the judges included, Karen and Carlos topped the leaderboard, even getting eights from Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke, which is certainly not to be sniffed at for week 1.
Not only that, but they broke a Strictly record in the process, as a footballer has not achieved the highest score on the programme for 18 whole years.
The studio erupted into a raucous footie-style celebration as the underdogs triumphed, forcing those watching at home to rethink their winner predictions altogether.
Taking to X after watching Karen earn a whopping 31 points for her first performance, @Multifandom_Amy wrote: ‘Karen and Carlos aced that performance. One of my favourite performance tonight. Just wow. Im speechless’.
‘Karen’s performance was absolutely incredible. So excited to see her progress each week & excellent choreography from Carlos! Such high scores in week one!!! Exciting times’, added @AngelaK8x.
Equally shocked, @MrJohnAburn tweeted: ‘Karen and Carlos??!!!! I did NOT see that coming!!!!!! WOW!!!!!’
@____Beckie____ added that Karen ‘deserves to be top’ with her scores tonight, while @atvfriend thinks the routine would’ve got a 10 in any other week.
‘DAMN….did not know Karen had that in her locker….she smashed it! Amazing jive….dark horse for the competition!!’, declared @plug_in_baby_x.
Following her performance, Karen was showered with praise by the panel, with Shirley hailing her as ‘sensational’ and the ‘best dance of the night’.
And while resident Mr Nasty Craig Revel Horwood asked for ‘softer edges’ and less ‘spikiness’, even he had compliments for Karen, telling her: ‘I was not expecting any of that, my darling.’
Upstairs, an overwhelmed Karen was so graceful as she told host Claudia Winkleman: ‘Everyone did an amazing job. It’s been a great show, hasn’t it?’
‘It’s been an honour, honestly. I’m really emotional,’ she added sweetly.
The sporting star admitted it was ‘nerve-wracking’ having to wait until the end to perform, joking that she was now ‘really hungry’ after two and a half hours of live TV.
While Karen’s performance was certainly the most surprising part of the night, there were still plenty of other talking points.
Earlier on, Olympian and Gladiator Harry Aikines-Aryeetey was moved to tears following his cha cha to Salt-N-Pepa’s Push It with pro partner Karen Hauer, which scored 19.
He couldn’t hold back the waterworks once the music ended, telling Tess Daly: ‘This time last year, I just wasn’t able to do anything like that, and I never thought I’d be myself again. It just feels so nice to be myself.
‘I had an injury. I dreamed of that moment, and even though I did [the Christmas special], I wasn’t 100% there, and now I’m 100%, so I’m thankful.’
Meanwhile, musical theatre star Amber had a strong debut, scoring 27 for her waltz to Adele’s When We Were Young, which judge Motsi described as ‘very special’.
Former Love Islander Amber replaced Dani Dyer-Bowen on the show when she was forced to leave after fracturing her ankle during rehearsals.
But at the start of Saturday’s show, Tess and Claudia ensured she wasn’t forgotten, telling her as she watched at home: ‘Dani, we will miss you so much, and all of us are sending you all our love.’
Other stand-out moments included the infectious joy of model Ellie Goldstein, who is the first person with Down syndrome to compete on the main series, while professional Dianne Buswell also thanked her Strictly family for their support after announcing her pregnancy. She and Aussie soap legend Stefan, 66, will still dance this series.
Giving Karen and Carlos a run for their money, meanwhile, were Lewis Cope and Katya Jones, who also danced a jive. They scored a very respectable 28 and placed second on the leaderboard.
But with no elimination for week 1, the judges’ scores will be combined with next week’s totals before two pairs dance off and one is sent packing… but who do you think it will be?
Strictly Come Dancing returns next Saturday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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