Former Strictly Come Dancing pro Brendan Cole has now shared his thoughts on judge Shirley Ballas' controversial decision that came during the most recent dance-off.
Sunday night's episode of the BBC show saw Shayne Ward, 40, and Nancy Xu, 33, voted out of the competition after performing their rumba to Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time again. They were in the dance-off against Wynne Evans, 52, and Katya Jones, 35, who were saved after dancing their American smooth to Mika's Grace Kelly for a second time.
The judges were split over who to send home, leaving head judge Shirley, 64, with the deciding vote. She chose to save radio host Wynne, rather than actor Shayne, explaining to them: "Both of you had hiccups [...] but one of you displayed a much more powerful and joyous routine for me."
The decision has since been questioned and some fans have criticised Shirley getting to have the casting vote. There have even been calls on social media for a petition to get her off the show. Responding to a tweet proposing a petition, Shirley teased: "Where do I sign lol. Night night. X"
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Dave Benett/Getty Images)Image:
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)Professional dancer Brendan, 48 - who appeared on Strictly from 2004 to 2017 - shared his thoughts on Shirley's choice whilst speaking with Sky Vegas. He also discussed her remark that Wynne's routine was more "joyous". Brendan said: "[Shirley saving Wynne for doing a jollier number] is where the show goes wrong because it's not based on personality, and it's not based on what dance style you're doing. To even make that comment is fairly harsh."
The former pro - who won the first ever series of Strictly with newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky in 2004 - added: "It's supposed to be about who is the best at that moment, who has put the best performance in the dance-off. When I say performance, I don't mean the bigger, louder number."
He continued by explaining: "I mean who has done the best dance regardless of style. You can't compare a Rumba and an American Smooth, so you've got to base it on the technical aspect and the performance aspect as a whole."
The latest dance-off, which was broadcast on Sunday, saw Craig Revel Horwood, 59, and Motsi Mabuse, 43, both vote to save Shayne and his dance partner Nancy. Craig said he found Shayne to be a "better dance" than Wynne, whilst Motsi said he displayed more of an "advantaged technique".
Anton Du Beke, 58, however voted to save Wynne, saying: "Both couples made a little mistake early on and I think it threw one couple more than the other." Shirley, given the casting vote, agreed with the couple saved by Anton.
Ahead of sharing her decision, Shirley said: "I don't want to see either couple leave, actually, because I thought you both had a great run this series. But based on this dance alone, both of you had hiccups, a few little hiccups there, but one of you displayed a much more powerful and joyous routine for me so it was quite difficult for me to choose but on this occasion I'm going to save Wynne and Katya."
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