December 1st 2024.
In a surprising turn of events, Montell Douglas and her partner Johannes Radebe found themselves in the bottom two of Strictly Come Dancing’s quarter-final dance-off. The former Gladiator and Olympian was ultimately eliminated from the competition, making her the 10th celebrity to leave the show.
Their opponents in the dance-off were Tasha Ghouri, a Love Island star, and her partner Aljaž Škorjanec. Despite scoring the second-highest with a 38 for their Argentine Tango on Saturday’s Musicals Week, Tasha and Aljaž found themselves in the bottom two.
Both couples performed their dances once again on Sunday’s results show, with Montell and Johannes receiving a score of 32 for their Rhumba to “I’m Here” from The Colour Purple. This was lower than Tasha and Aljaž’s score, causing an uproar among fans who believed that Tasha should not have been in the bottom two, especially since she had received a perfect score of 40 for a previous routine.
Many viewers expressed their frustration on social media, with one fan even saying that it was “insulting to the contest.” Others were shocked that Tasha and Montell were competing against each other, with one person calling it “unfair” and another stating that it was one of the biggest injustices in the show’s history.
Some had predicted that Montell might struggle this week, as the Rhumba is known to be a difficult dance for celebrities. In fact, it has been dubbed the “kiss of death” for many contestants who have been eliminated after performing it.
Meanwhile, Towie star Pete Wicks and his partner Jowita Przystal managed to avoid the dance-off despite receiving a low score of 26 and making a noticeable mistake during their waltz to “Somewhere” from West Side Story.
On the top of the leaderboard was JLS singer JB Gill and his partner Lauren Oakley, who received a near-perfect score of 39 for their Viennese Waltz to “Let’s Go Fly a Kite” from Mary Poppins. Miranda actress Sarah Hadland and her partner Vito Coppola also scored 38 for their Charleston to “Popular” from Wicked, while Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell received a score of 32 for their Quickstep to “You’re The Top” from Anything Goes.
After the dance-off, the judges unanimously voted to save Tasha and Aljaž, sending Montell and Johannes home. Montell expressed her gratitude for the experience, saying that Strictly had touched her in ways she never thought possible. Her partner Johannes also had kind words for her, calling her his “winner” and thanking her for respecting the art of Ballroom and Latin dancing.
The show also featured a performance of “The Schuyler Sisters” from the musical Hamilton and a group number by the professional dancers to “As If We Never Said Goodbye” from Sunset Boulevard.
Next week, the remaining five couples will perform two full dance routines for the semi-final. This will be the first time this series that the contestants will have to tackle more than one dance in a single week. The Samba-Thon, which featured in last Saturday’s episode, caused controversy among fans who felt that it was not a fair competition.
Strictly Come Dancing will air live on BBC One and iPlayer on Saturday, December 7 at 6:30pm, with the results show following on Sunday, December 8 at 7:20pm. If you have a celebrity story, video, or pictures, you can get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing them, calling 020 3615 2145, or visiting their Submit Stuff page. They would love to hear from you.
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