Why do acts who dance last on Strictly score better?
Three out of four weeks have seen the final dancer top the leaderboard. Is last place lucky?
There's something about that final Strictly Come Dancing slot. You'd think the last celebrity to take to the floor on a Saturday night would be a glitter-coated bundle of nerves - they've waited live on TV for two hours, watching all their fellow competitors perform before they get to dance themselves - but it seems that's actually far from the case.
Dancing the last dance of the evening might be a nerve-wracking but it also means you're more likely to bag a high score from the judges.
So far we've had four weeks of Strictly Come Dancing 2015 - and three times out of four the last celebrity on the floor has topped the leaderboard before the phone lines have opened for the public vote.
Peter Andre was top in week one, taking the lead during the final dance of the weekend. In week three Jay McGuiness's Jive closed the show and quickly sent him soaring ahead of his competitors. And during this weekend's show Katie Derham and Anton Du Beke took the lead after performing last.
It's got us thinking. Maybe it's a lucky slot? Perhaps the build up is a good thing and the celebs are putting all that nervous energy into a fab-u-lous performance? Or could Strictly bosses be strategically placing dances they think will impress at the end, so the live shows end on a high?
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"The producers try to put together the most entertaining and dynamic running order each week. Plus of course try to mix it up amongst all the couples," a source at the show tells RadioTimes.com, adding: "Thus far we’ve had a different couple start and finish each show."
Either way, if we were competing, we'd be hassling the producers to put us in last place...
Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday at 6:35pm on BBC1
