Strictly's Chris and Dianne pictured in tender moment backstage moments before teary performance

Strictly Come Dancing pair Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell shared a sweet moment together before their incredible performance on Saturday night as they took a moment away from the madness together

Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell shared a tender moment before hitting the dancefloor with their emotional performance on Saturday night.

The Strictly Come Dancing duo wowed both the judges and viewers with their incredible Waltz to You’ll Never Walk Alone by Gerry and the Pacemakers - a song which means the world to Liverpool-born Chris, 47.

Before taking to the famous Strictly dance floor, it appeared that comedian Chris, who is the first blind contestant to grace the BBC competition, was fighting away nerves as he shared an intimate moment with Australian dancer Dianne, 35.

The pair, who are favourites to lift the Glitterball Trophy this year, held hands and embraced before hitting the dance floor. Chris planted a sweet kiss on Dianne's hand after the pair practised their form one more time before their spectacular and tear-jerking routine.

In other photos, Dianne can be seen helping Chris with his shoes moments before they faced the judges - who were evidently incredibly impressed with the performance - giving the pair a whopping 35 points overall. Their highest score of the series so far.

Chris' performance to You'll Never Walk Alone had the judges, including Wirral-born Shirley Ballas almost in tears as he explained why the song meant so much to him.

Chris and Australian Dianne received 35 points from judges Shirley, Anton du Beke, Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood, their highest score so far in the competition.

After their incredible performance, eagle-eyed fans noticed that Chris had whispered into Dianne's ear as the pair hugged following the emotional dance. While embracing Chris, Dianne told him: "I'm so proud of you".

To which Chris replied: "Did I do okay?". In response, professional dancer Dianne insisted: "You did good yeah. Really, really, good."

The amazing dance routine has secured Chris and Dianne for another week on Strictly.

However, it was Paul Merson's time to say goodbye after he became the fourth contestant of the series to be given the boot after taking part in the dreaded dance-off against JLS singer, JB Gill and his professional dance partner, Amy Dowden.

As a result, it was time for Paul and Karen to bid farewell to the Strictly dancefloor - but not before Paul had one more parting dig at his beloved Arsenal's rival team Tottenham before he left the dancefloor for good.

Asked about his time on the show, he told host Tess Daly: "When asked by Tess about their time on the show, Paul said: “It's been really good. For anybody I talk to, I would say you've got to go on this show. It's amazing - everybody," before he jokingly added: "There's a Tottenham fan over there called Lincoln and even he's nice!"

Turning his praise to his professional dance partner Karen, he added: "It's been amazing, honestly, amazing. I loved every minute of it, I've had a great teacher. She’s been amazing, absolutely amazing and I couldn't wish for a better coach. I’ve loved every minute of it. I can dance now - I've won because I can dance, I couldn't dance before and I can half dance now. It's a bonus, absolute bonus."

Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.