‘Strictly Come Dancing’ star Ashley Roberts topped the leaderboard once again on Saturday night, with a beautiful routine performed in her late father’s memory.
Back in April, Ashley revealed that her father had taken his own life, with the former Pussycat Dolls singer paying tribute with her Contemporary routine in the most recent ‘Strictly’ live show.
Explaining the theme of the routine was “loss”, she explained: “I lost my dad earlier this year. My dad and I connected over music and performing.
“So to have this show come in at this time - I just feel that it is a gift in so many ways... I know that he is with me, and that means a lot.”
The performance went down a storm with the judges, who gave Ashley and her professional partner Pasha Kovalev 39 points of a possible 40, for the third week running.
Elsewhere, for the second week in a row, actor Danny John-Jules and Amy Dowden found themselves as the bottom of the leaderboard, and were the only couple to score below 30.
Their Samba to Sigala’s ‘Feels Like Home’ bagged them 27 points, an improvement from last week’s Quickstep score, but still the lowest ranking dance of the night.
It’s been a difficult week for Danny and Amy away from the competition, with a small falling out on Wednesday being followed by reports in the media that he was on his “final warning” after repeatedly “bullying” the ballroom star.
While an insider told HuffPost UK that no such warning had been given, the pair also spoke out on ‘It Takes Two’, insisting the matter had been blown out of proportion and that Danny was no bully.
Find out which two couples will be competing in this week’s dance-off in the Sunday night results show, airing at 7.50pm on BBC One.
Useful websites and helplines:
- Mind, open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393
- Samaritans offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI - this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill.)
- The Mix is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email: help@themix.org.uk
- Rethink Mental Illness offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0300 5000 927 (open Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on www.rethink.org.
Jay McGuiness's Jive
This was the moment that former Wanted singer Jay cemented himself as the favourite to win the 2015 series... and it was only week three (!!!) .
Ore Oduba's Showdance
Before the 2016 final, it looked as though Danny Mac had it in the bag, until Ore and Joanne Clifton came out with this Showdance, which managed to be both heaps of fun and technically impressive.
Faye Tozer's Jazz
Some Strictly fans were unsure when the BBC announced they were introducing three new routines to the show, one of which was Jazz, but any doubts we had went out the window as soon as Faye and Giovanni Pernice delivered this spooky routine.
Alesha Dixon's Cha-Cha-Cha
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When Alesha Dixon performed this show-stopping routine on series five, it was clear she was about to become a big star. She later became the next Arlene Phillips, replacing the veteran on the panel, and released a string of successful tunes post-Strictly.
Debbie McGee's Paso Doble
Reminder: this was Debbie McGee in week one.
Sophie Ellis Bextor's Charleston
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The Charleston was a fairly new dance to Strictly when S.E.B took it on in 2013. And despite it only being week two of the competition, she and partner Brendan Cole bagged a whopping 36 points for the routine.
Danny Mac's Samba
Danny and Oti's 2016 routine still makes us come over a bit funny. Let's put it this way - if it was any hotter, it would have been on literal fire.
Abbey Clancy's Waltz
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2013 champ Abbey wowed the judges with this beautiful waltz in week one of the competition, and brought it back for the final, where they scored a perfect 40 and lifted the Glitterball Trophy.
Jill Halfpenny's Jive
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If you can remember as far back as series two in 2004, you'll no doubt remember this knockout performance from Jill and partner Darren Bennett.
Lisa Riley's Samba
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We don't think anyone has ever had as much fun as Lisa and Robin Windsor performing their Samba on the show in 2012.
Caroline Flack's Charleston
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Cazza's Turkish interpretation of the Charleston cemented her as the favourite to win in 2014. She also performed the dance again in the final, which eventually saw her crowned winner.
Kara Tointon's Argentine Tango
Given the tension in this performance, it's no wonder Kara and Artem Chigvintsev announced they were an item shortly afterwards.
Louis Smith's Showdance
Not only did Louis Smith capture a lot of attention with his toplessness, his dancing was pretty good in this too.
Alexandra Burke's Jive
Alexandra Burke broke the record for the most "10"s given out during a series of Strictly, and with routines like this, it's not hard to see why.
Matt Di Angelo's Salsa
Matt went from Dean Wicks to snake hips with his performance of the Salsa in series five in 2007.
