Strictly Come Dancing viewers spotted a blunder missed by BBC show bosses during Sunday night's results show, as Dame Sarah Storey became the third celebrity to be sent home. The Paralympian and her pro partner Julian Caillon left the competition after failing to impress the judges with a Tango to Shania Twain's That Don't Impress Me Much.
As she bid farewell, Storey's comments to the judges and host Emma Wallis gave the game away for many fans. The Sunday results show is not actually live on Sunday, but is pre-recorded on Saturday night, straight after the main show, and then broadcast on Sunday with the appearance of being live.
Viewers react to 'twice tonight' comment
Audiences at home are not told the show is not live on Sunday. All of the dancers, judges and presenters even change their clothes between the two shows and make references to 'tonight' and 'last night' as if they were on two different nights. As a result, the result usually leaks on X hours before Sunday's show is actually broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
As Sarah was eliminated, she told the judges how happy she was that she got to perform her dance 'twice tonight', a comment spotted by viewers who were surprised the mistake was not edited out by the BBC.
@_blithe_spirit_ said: "Got to do it twice tonight" proof again it's all filmed on the Saturday #strictly"
@lgbt_lawyer sad: "Sarah saying she "got to do the dance twice tonight" completely destroying the fantasy that the Sunday show is live haha"
@sundaygirl851 added: "I got to do the dance twice tonight" amazed they didn't edit that part out!"
@tonycoffey15 added: "I really hate how they try to make out that both shows are not filmed on Saturday night.#Strictly"
@awinley said: "I got to do the dance twice tonight"
@esmerelda13 added: "I got to do it twice tonight"
Storey's exit and the dance-off
@A_ANGELS05 said: "The right person won in that dance off, having said that, Sarah was definitely sabotaged by that stupid theme. "Imagine dancing a tango to a jolly pop song. A tango is fierce full of passion, not a happy go lucky dance. The theme let her down."
She then added: "I wasn't going to say anything this year but to the person who keeps leaking the results on a Saturday, we get it, you've got a small willy."I don't get what you gain from it apart from peeing a little when your tweets get liked/shared."
Sarah and Julian placed bottom of the leaderboard during Saturday's Icons Week episode, having scored 21 for their routine. Judge Craig Revel Horwood said they "dropped the ball a little bit" during the dance, while Shirley Ballas praised their "attitude, character and dramatics", which she called "a very good start".
House Of The Dragon actress Bethany Antonia and her partner Nancy Xu placed third from the bottom after scoring 27 for their cha cha to Respect by Aretha Franklin but had to dance again after the public vote was added.
After both couples performed in the dance-off, the judges delivered their verdict and chose to send Dame Sarah – Great Britain's most successful Paralympian with 30 medals, including 19 golds at eight games – home. Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke opted to save Antonia, meaning head judge Ballas did not need to use her deciding vote.
Results show highlights and what's next
The results show also featured a performance from the professional dancers paying tribute to Madonna, reflecting the many different eras of her career. It also included a routine dedicated to the late Dolly Parton, who died in August at the age of 80 after a brief battle with cancer. Country singer Belles, who recorded a duet with Parton earlier this year, sang the hit song Jolene while Amy Dowden and Kai Widdrington danced.
The remaining 12 couples will take to the dancefloor next week, with Australian singer Delta Goodrem set to make a return after receiving a bye this week due to an injury. Strictly Come Dancing returns at 6.30pm next Saturday on BBC One.
