Metro columnist Adam Miller has hit back at fans branding Strictly Come Dancing star Jaime Winstone 'unlikeable', arguing the criticism reeks of misogyny after she landed in the bottom two.
Jaime Winstone has consistently been one of the best dancers on Strictly so far but, for some reason, the public hasn't got on board. Celebrity hairdresser Chris Appelton was the first to get the chop last week – and rightly so. His performances lacked any charisma or pizazz for someone who has buckets of both. But joining him in the bottom two was Jaime, which felt criminal but, sadly, not entirely surprising.
A breathtaking Viennese waltz
Last night, Jaime and her partner Carlos Gu – the reigning champion with his former partner Karen Carney – placed fourth on the leaderboard for their Viennese waltz to the INXS anthem Never Tear Us Apart. It was genuinely quite breathtaking and by far one of the best performances of what was otherwise a fairly lacklustre night compared to Movie Week.
Jaime brings an intensity to each performance that no one else this series has shown; a gift that training alone can't buy. She has a natural love for the dance floor, the music and, as an actress, the drama. Her cha-cha-cha to Pretty Woman was bursting with energy – at times maybe too much – and I don't think I've ever seen someone so excited during a first dance as she was during their tango to Donna Summer's I Feel Love.
'Unlikeable' critique reserved for women
If she lands in the bottom two tonight, it's not just an unfair result – it reeks of misogyny. I can't fathom why the public isn't as engaged with Jaime as I am. She has been nothing but camp, fabulous, determined and clearly has a close bond with her professional partner that feels like it goes beyond the show already.
Looking at the reaction to her last night, among the comments saying how much she'd improved there were others branding her 'unlikeable'. I can't stand the term. It essentially means, 'I just don't like someone and I don't have to give – or even have – any reason to justify it.' It's also generally a critique reserved for women. It reminds me of the empty, albeit I'm sure extremely painful, backlash aimed at Anne Hathaway, which was so widely recognised it was even dubbed 'Hathahate'.
The Oscar-winning actor has never been involved in scandal, has pretty universally loved reputation within the industry, but has had an alarming army of critics who 'just don't like her'. Men are rarely, if ever, tarnished with the same worthless criticism. If they're not liked, it's generally because they've done something to warrant it, or have a genuinely jarring personality, perhaps.
A career built on talent
Jaime is actually one of my favourite contestants on this series. She's built a credible and highly successful career as an actress – starring in 2:22 A Ghost Story – but was also known in the media as one of the biggest party girls of the 2000s. I've never met Jaime, but on paper, she is my kind of person – vivacious, fun, and anyone who adores and vocally supports the LGBTQ+ community as much as she does is likely to be a real sweetheart, too.
I don't know what there is on that list to make her unpalatable to some Strictly fans. I can almost guarantee that if a man turned out the same standard of performances she has so far, they wouldn't be in the very first bottom two. Perhaps she's been unfairly stained by nepotism; her dad, of course, being the great Ray Winstone. There is nothing an actor like Jaime – with a hugely successful parent in the business – can do to avoid being criticised (even if her sister says they had to earn their own way).
To me, Jaime has built a career from her own talent and done so with humility around her upbringing – she hasn't shied away from who her dad is, but hasn't leant on him for success either. She got my vote last night, and knowing she needs the support, she's almost guaranteed to get it every week going forward. I'm not doing it out of pity but because she deserves to be in this contest for much longer than so many others.
A test for Strictly fans
Jaime captures everything Strictly is about; she is all of us who throw ourselves onto a dancefloor with total carefree abandon but have never had any actual ballroom training. You could tell from her Viennese waltz that they worked tirelessly to avoid a repeat of last weekend. I'm almost sure she'll sail through another round.
But the public can't just get behind her this week because she was in the bottom two last Sunday; they need to back her because she is bringing so much to this show, so much to that stage, and is truly earning her spot. If Jaime lands in the bottom two over the painfully clunky Shaun Wright-Phillips and Melanie Walters, it won't just be a crushing blow. It will quite clearly expose a problem between Strictly fans and a woman who has done absolutely nothing to deserve being branded 'unlikeable' just for the sake of it.
