Strictly Come Dancing returned to BBC One on Saturday night as all couples performed their first routines of the series. Among the most nervous performers was football pundit and Ian Wright's son, Shaun Wright-Phillips, who is partnered with professional Alexis Warr.
The pair danced a Cha Cha to Lil Boo Thang by Paul Russell. While some judges found the performance sweet and endearing, Motsi Mabuse noticed his reluctance to let loose on the dancefloor, raising the threat of an early exit.
Low score and fan reaction
Shaun scored a total of 15 on the leaderboard, a mark that will carry over to next week as no one was eliminated during week one. In a shared Instagram post with Alexis, he admitted he had "felt quite anxious during the warm up".
Fans took to Instagram and X, formerly Twitter, to urge the former England footballer to "not hold back". One commenter said: "Footwork was good, he just needs to perform more facially. Love them though. Hopefully Shaun will come out of his shell more." Another wrote: "He tried hard but needs to relax into it more, he had the steps but may have felt self-conscious, as most of us would. He can improve, I'm sure." A third added: "Aww Shaun, he just needs to loosen up and feel confidence", while a fourth echoed: "Shaun, don't hold back, just let loose and enjoy it. Hoping we see him do a ballroom next week, got a feeling he could have some ballroom magic."
Shaun's honest admission
Following his first dance, Shaun said on Instagram: "After two weeks of demanding training and a lot of frustrating moments, to be honest, I felt quite anxious during the warm-up, and walking to the car to take my seat involved a pep talk to breathe and take everything in stride."
He continued: "The crowd's atmosphere was impressive but intensified my nerves, though I began to settle once I started. I was pleased to perform every step accurately in the routine. I am keen to start on Monday, developing the new dance and taking the judges' feedback on board. Can't wait for what's ahead!"
Head judge's praise
Head judge Shirley Ballas praised the football icon during her feedback on the night: "You danced a checked forward walk and a checked forward walk is used to change direction, and you changed direction superbly. You used a back cucaracha, which requires two straight legs to manoeuvre your lady, stayed slap bang on time."
She added: "When you move in Rumba or Cha Cha, one leg should be straight and one leg should be bent. You swing that bent one underneath the body, you kept them a little bit too straight, but there was so much here to like with room for improvement. Did I actually see a sweetheart with a natural top? You see, you had some good choreography in there along with your tricks and flicks and everything else you did."
Shaun is one of three dancers at the bottom of the leaderboard after Saturday night, alongside Dame Sarah Storey with her partner Julian Caillon, and Melanie Walters with her partner Aljaž Škorjanec. Their week one scores will be combined with their week two scores before the first contestant is voted off. Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One on Saturday at 6.15pm.
