Strictly Come Dancing’s Catherine Tyldesley is the fifth celebrity to exit the competition
The Corrie star faced Mike Bushell in the dreaded dance-off
After a spooktacular Halloween bonanza, this weekend’s Strictly Come Dancing finishes with a somewhat surprising result: Catherine Tyldesley has become the fifth celebrity to exit the competition.
Although having spent earlier weeks of the contest in the upper half of the table, the former Coronation Street actress was eliminated after a closely-fought dance-off with Mike Bushell.
Facing the BBC Breakfast presenter and his professional partner Katya Jones, Tyldesley and trainer Johannes Radebe failed to wow the majority of judges with their Cha Cha to Scared Of The Dark by Steps.
While Motsi Mabuse and Bruno Tonioli opted to save Tyldesley and Radebe, Craig Revel Horwood voted to keep Bushell in the contest.
Holding the deciding vote, head judge Shirley Ballas decide to eliminate Tyldesley.
Explaining her vote, Ballas said: “I thought both couples really stepped it up a notch and this is always the most difficult decision for me. But based on a good focus, difficult content, with some really beautiful footwork in there with stronger technical skills, for me, cleaner and polished, I’m going to save Mike and Katya.”
Speaking about her time on the show with host Tess Daly, Tyldesley said: “I never thought I’d say this, I’m going to keep [up dancing] because I fell in love with it!”
Speaking about his dance partner, Johannes Radebe added: “I want to say thank you to this woman. She has been a light for me. Thank you for accepting me for who I am and for showing me joy every day. Thank you!”
Only 10 couples competed in this week’s competition after Will Bayley was forced to drop out after suffering a painful knee injury.
Opening the show, Claudia Winkleman told viewers: “Now, you may have noticed that Will and Janette are missing from tonight’s line-up.
"Unfortunately Will suffered a knee injury in training and although he was desperate to take part tonight, after a full medical check he’s been told he absolutely cannot perform and must rest.”
While the rules of Strictly will allow the couple to return next week, it is not clear how long Will could need to recover.
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC1 on Saturday 2nd November at 7pm
Authors
Thomas is Digital editor at BBC Science Focus. Writing about everything from cosmology to anthropology, he specialises in the latest psychology, health and neuroscience discoveries. Thomas has a Masters degree (distinction) in Magazine Journalism from the University of Sheffield and has written for Men’s Health, Vice and Radio Times. He has been shortlisted as the New Digital Talent of the Year at the national magazine Professional Publishers Association (PPA) awards. Also working in academia, Thomas has lectured on the topic of journalism to undergraduate and postgraduate students at The University of Sheffield.