Strictly Come Dancing has eliminated its fourth couple, with former footballer Shaun Wright-Phillips and his professional partner Alexis Warr leaving the competition. The show also announced a major twist for Halloween weekend: the first-ever triple dance-off.
This week, Delta Goodrem became the first star to achieve a 10, and Tabby Stoecker earned a near-perfect total of 37 from the panel. Shaun Wright-Phillips, 45, finished at the bottom of the leaderboard, landing him and Alexis Warr, 26, in the dance-off against Jaime Winstone, 41, and Carlos Gu, 33. Jaime had previously been in the first bottom two, while Shaun was saved against Melanie Walters.
Dance-off results and judges' verdicts
Both couples performed their routines again. Jaime and Carlos performed their Foxtrot to Man I Need by Olivia Dean, scoring 25, while Shaun and Alexis performed their Jive to Faith by Stevie Wonder ft. Ariana Grande, scoring just 17.
Judges Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse voted to save Jaime and Carlos. Head judge Shirley Ballas opted to save Shaun and Alexis, leaving Anton Du Beke with the casting vote. He chose to save Jaime and Carlos, making Shaun and Alexis the fourth casualties of the series, while Jaime has now survived two possible eliminations.
Emotional farewell from Shaun and Alexis
After the result was confirmed, Shaun became tearful as he said: 'I don't think I can put into words how my time has been. From the pros, the judges, the staff behind the cameras, everybody that's helped me along the way… It's been the most amazing journey I've had.'
He added: 'And thank you for giving me the chance to be on the Strictly ballroom floor and actually learn how to dance!'
Alexis praised Shaun, saying: 'The resilience that this man has is so admirable, and I just wanna say, thank you so much. You have made this season such a joy for me, and it's been so lovely to just get to know you, and get to see you completely handle something different, and I'm so proud of how you just danced that dance-off.'
She added: 'Also, the gentleman that this man is, I feel so honoured to have had him as my partner.' Shaun said he couldn't have asked 'for a better partner', joking that Alexis knew how to 'deal with [his] mood swings, which isn't easy'.
First-ever triple dance-off for Halloween
Shaun's elimination wasn't the only announcement. Next week's results show will feature Strictly's first-ever triple dance-off, meaning the three couples with the lowest combined judges' scores and public votes will perform again. Instead of voting to 'save' a couple, the judges will vote for who they wish to eliminate.
Fans on X reacted to the news with mixed feelings. @PeaksLfc wrote 'Nooo I don't like that at all', while @RyanSoapKing25 argued the twist is 'giving the judges more power than what they already have', adding: 'I don't see the point of this twist almost halfway through the series. Why change something that doesn't need to be changed?'
@jordanlea29 said 'this series is stressing me out', @mebecauseofgu said a triple dance-off 'makes no sense', and @OliverO21312 called it 'just cruel'. Some suggested going further, with @rh_account2 writing that two couples should be eliminated 'if they really wanted to be evil!'
The BBC has confirmed the triple dance-off is for Strictly's Halloween results only, with the series returning to a regular two-couple dance-off from the following week. Craig Revel Horwood joked, 'My time has finally arrived!'
Elsewhere in the results show, Jamie Miller gave his UK television debut performance of Babydoll alongside Antonio Cipriano, and Melanie C joined the Strictly professionals for a fitness-based group dance. Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
