The pair put in an assured first display, which had Kevin's proud dad Keith, owner of Clifton's Dance Academy, tipping them as strong contenders to win the competition.

Things didn't go quite so smoothly for Kevin's fiancee and fellow professional dancer Karen Hauer, after the judges panned the performance of her partner Dave Myers, from TV's Hairy Bikers, on Saturday night's show.

However, Keith believes the pair could be set for a long run on the programme because of the entertainment value they have already brought to the show.

Kevin and Susanna scored an impressive 28 from the judges – 6 from Craig Revel Horwood, 7 from Darcey Bussell and Bruno Tonioli and 8 from Len Goodman – for their jive to Blues Brothers' Shake Your Tailfeather.

That score will be carried forward to next week, when the first couple will be eliminated.

Darcey Bussell said: "Wow, you really sold me that jive.You had great style all the way through I can't wait to see what you are going to do next week!"

Len Goodman said: "That dance was like chicken soup to the eyes, delicious. The content of the dance was great."

Craig Revel Horwood said the pair had "real energy" on the dance floor, but added that Susanna was heavy on her feet and described her cartwheel as horrendous.

Speaking to the show's co-host Tess Daly, Susanna said that Kevin was "the king of jive".

Kevin said: "I have enjoyed every minute of the show so far."

Karen and Dave's energetic routine to Maroon 5's Moves Like Jagger had the audience in raptures, but failed to impress the judges.

The pair were give a lowly score of just 16 – 2 from Craig, 5 from both Darcey and Len, and 4 from Bruno.

Asked for his thoughts on the performance, the viper-tongued Craig was rendered momentarily speechless before launching into a scathing attack on Dave's unrefined technique.

"Terrifying. I actually recoiled in horror when you were coming down the steps. I had an overwhelming feeling of revulsion when you started gyrating and booty-shaking."

Bruno said the performance left him feeling "bilious" while Len said: "Dave, you dance like I cook – just chuck it all in and hope for the best."

But Darcey said the routine wanted to make her "cry with happiness" and co-host Bruce Forsyth told Dave: "I don't care what they say, you are my favourite."

Commenting on his son's Strictly debut, Kevin's proud dad Keith said: "I think superlatives are overused sometimes, especially when you are biased, but the boy did good – they both looked good. They pretty much nailed the routine.

"They chose a difficult dance to start with, but the jive is one of Kevin's better dances and they took the opinion that they would like to make an impact right from the beginning, and I think they did that. All in all it was a good job. I think we've got a contender already."

On Karen and Dave's first effort, he said: "We thought Karen and Dave were going to be one of the highlights and we weren't far wrong. The judges certainly liked it despite what Craig said. Yes, his dancing leaves a lot to be desired and he's never going to be the world professional champion but the entertainment value was enormous.

"They are bouncing off each other like a trampoline. Their humour has just been joined together like an electric current. It is really good for Karen as it is showing her for the warm, caring, funny and eclectic person that she is. I think they will go a long way."

ON THE WEB: Watch a video of Kevin and Karen's performances at www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk , where you can also leave messages of support for both couples.

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