Former Strictly Come Dancing professional dancers James and Ola Jordan are so impressed with Maisie Smith they believe she could return to the BBC One show as a professional dancer.

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Their startling suggestion came after EastEnders star Maisie, 19, and her partner Gorka Marquez topped the leaderboard on Saturday with their exquisite Viennese waltz.

James told HELLO!: "With Maisie, I would go as far as saying she was one of the best celebrity dancers we've ever had on Strictly. I think Gorka has done such an amazing job with her."

He said that apart from Maisie and HRVY it wasn't a great semi-final and said the two dancers "saved the show".

Ola agreed: "The Viennese Waltz was exceptional. From her frame to her footwork, everything was beautiful."

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James added: "And it was a difficult routine. The Viennese Waltz can be quite repetitive and boring, but Gorka made the routine really intricate and interesting. She's 19 and for whatever reason at the beginning people weren't voting for her, and I'm happy to see that people are now seeing that she is brilliant and works just as hard – probably harder than anyone else. Because it's tough when you're in the bottom two."

James felt that judge Motsi Mabuse got a bit carried away when she said that HRVY could come back as a professional, although it was a nice thing to say.

Ola said: "But maybe in 10 years' time Maisie could come back as a pro."

James agreed: "I would say she could, she looked better than some of the pro girls! She could have been a professional Latin and Ballroom dancer. Maisie is still so young, but proving her talent every week."

The husband and wife are friendly with HRVY's pro partner Janette Manrara but were conflicted about who they hoped would win the Glitterball Trophy next weekend.

James said: "Myself and Ola love Janette, we get on extremely well with her and [her husband] Aljaž [Škorjanec]."

Ola said: "She really deserves to be in the final."

James added: "She does, and she should have been there before in my opinion with some of her other partners but she wasn't unfortunately. She deserves to be in that final. I'm kind of torn because I love Maisie and Gorka, but I'd also love to see Janette win as well."

The Strictly Come Dancing final screens on BBC One on Saturday 19th December.

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