Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists—one couple ‘lacks the inner arrogance’ to win in the face of another’s ‘fearless’ performance

The Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists have worked long and hard to make it to the grand final, but their body language could suggest that one might find it more of a challenge to “power through to a win”.

The Strictly finalists 2021 have just three performances left to show the Strictly Come Dancing judges 2021 and the voting public at home that they deserve to be crowned this year’s champions. Though relieved they weren’t the ones who left Strictly Come Dancing ahead of the grand Strictly Come Dancing 2021 final on Saturday, 18th December, the hard work has begun again for Rose Ayling-Ellis and John Whaite.

Sadly, AJ Odudu has reportedly been forced to pull out of the Strictly final after a devastating ankle injury, meaning that at the moment, it seems Rose and John will be the only ones competing for the crown. But their most recent appearances could be enlightening when it comes to predicting a possible winner. 

It seems the body language shown by one of the couples could suggest they lack an important quality that might just help them lift the glitterball trophy...

The Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists that still have work to do to be crowned winners 

With the Strictly final now just days away, the pressure is well and truly on for the remaining Strictly 2021 couples as three dances stand between them and lifting that iconic glitterball trophy. When it comes to the Bookmakers’ predictions, Strictly’s Rose and Giovanni have been consistently tipped to take home the title of Strictly winners. 

Sadly for fellow Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists John and Johannes, whose amazing Strictly Pirates of the Caribbean performance slashed their odds at the time, it’s this popular couple who’ve been trailing the other finalists in recent odds. Whilst BetVictor currently has odds of 10-1 for both John and Johannes and AJ and Kai respectively, Rose remains 1-12 favourite.

Now it seems The Great British Bake Off winner’s own body language could suggest they apparently “lack” a quality that could see them succeed Bill Bailey and Oti Mabuse as champions. Buzz Bingo asked body language expert Judi James for her opinion on which of the remaining three couples can hold their nerve and do exactly what it takes to raise the glitterball this Saturday. 

And when it comes to John and Johannes, Judi reportedly believes they lack confidence. The expert explained that “their body language hints at a psychological state of imposter syndrome, meaning they might just lack the inner arrogance that can power them through to a win”.

Though if there’s anything that could help give them the confidence they need in the Strictly Come Dancing final, it’s their chemistry as a couple. Back in November, John candidly opened up on why he rejected Johannes Radebe as a partner at first, but since being paired together on the launch show, they’ve gone from strength to strength.

“It has been good to watch the dancefloor chemistry of this couple grow and to see them include moments of passion and sexual tension into their routines,” Judi continued. “They will be competing with the super-intense sizzle factor supplied weekly by AJ & Kai so hopefully they will have the confidence to let rip for the final”. 

Analysing the body language she expects to see in winners, Judi added, “Winners need to show intense body language synchronicity on and off the floor and John and Johannes are now using spontaneously tactile rituals, eye contact and even breathing in unison when they chat to Claudia.”

“They share a powerful objective in terms of breaking down barriers and this reflects in their gleaming eye expressions and their obvious excitement at working together to do so,” she declared.

So whilst John and Johannes might need to dig a little deeper to revive their confidence and overcome a supposed level of “imposter syndrome” to win, their incredible bond and “excitement at working together” might mean that the crown isn’t completely out of reach after all. With even more hard work, fans would no doubt be delighted to see John’s confidence peak in the final.  

Who are the favourites to be the Strictly Come Dancing 2021 winners? 

If the current odds turn out to predict which of the Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists will be winners, then Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice are the likeliest to lift the glitterball trophy. Some might wonder whether Giovanni has ever won Strictly, yet this would be his first ever year. When it comes to their body language, Judi James revealed that whilst John and Johannes might lack some confidence, Rose is “fearless” in her performances. 

The expert suggested that she and Giovanni have remained resilient, sharing, “So far in this competition Rose has looked utterly fearless and this has led to Giovanni producing some rather parental-looking body language signals as he gazes at her in a mixture of what looks like awe and adoration.”

And it’s not just coming from Giovanni’s side, as Judi added, “She is fearless with him too, hitting him playfully and returning some of his comments with cheeky banter”. 

Judi believes, “This couple bring a new form of chemistry to the dancefloor in terms of displays of elegance, subtlety and repressed emotions. Their body language signals during their routines are very similar to Torvill and Dean’s during their Olympic era, when it was the subtle moments of what looked like supressed longing that had fans hooked on the ‘romance’ even though they knew it wasn’t for real. Rose’s calm body language tinged with the subtlest moments of intensity are in total contrast to AJ’s fireworks, making for a fascinating finale.”

If that wasn’t enough, the expert has suggested that their charisma could be unmatched by other Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists, John and Johannes or AJ and Kai. She said, “They are as mesmerising off the dancefloor as they are on it, maybe more so. If they are Torvill and Dean during their routines they are Ant and Dec during their interviews.”

Why did AJ and Kai pull out of Strictly Come Dancing?

This week Strictly fans were shocked when it was revealed that one of the three Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists, AJ Odudu, had sustained a “repeated traumatic impact injury” to her right ankle. Taking to social media, the Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalist seemed to suggest that she was planning on dancing in the live final, health permitting. 

AJ revealed that they “haven’t been nor will be able to rehearse properly ahead of the live final”, before going on to end the heartbreaking post by saying, “I sincerely hope it will be all right on the night”. 

Since then, Strictly’s AJ’s partner has spoken out, with Kai sharing his support for her and now, very sadly, AJ and Kai have had to pull out of the final. 

In a detailed and deeply personal message to fans shared on social media, AJ revealed that she was unable to perform in the final, despite even asking the doctors if she could "perform in a medical moonboot". The star went on to thank Kai and everyone involved in her Strictly experience, as well as the medical team who've been caring for her. 

"Strictly Come Dancing has been a lifelong dream of mine and I'm glad it came true", she continued. "‘Good luck to my partners in dance, @john_whaite & @Johannesradebe and @Rose.a.e and @perniceGiovann1. I will be cheering you all on (on one leg). 😆🎉🎉".

Fans will no doubt miss both AJ and Kai hugely when the final airs, though it seems she will be cheering on her fellow Strictly Come Dancing 2021 finalists too. 

With such intriguing body language displayed by John and Rose, it looks set to be a very interesting Strictly final, albeit tinged with sadness after AJ's departure. Whether John will regain inner confidence in time to out-dance odds-on favourite Rose with her “fearless” performances remains to be seen. 

But we do know one thing for sure—we can’t wait to see which of the Strictly Come Dancing 201 finalists lift the glitterball this year!  

The Strictly Come Dancing 2021 final airs at 7pm on BBC One, Saturday December 18th.