Who left Strictly 2023? Second celebrity to be vote out revealed
Strictly had to wave goodbye to its second contestant.
The 2023 series of Strictly Come Dancing continued on BBC One last night, with this year’s celebrity line-up taking to the dancefloor for Movie Week.
While the Week Three show featured some impressive performances, with Shirley Ballas awarding the first 10 and Anton Du Beke calling one dance "the best number of the series", unfortunately we had to say goodbye to our second 2023 contestant.
After landing in the bottom spots on the Strictly leaderboard, radio presenter Nikita Kanda and documentary presenter Zara McDermot found themselves in the dreaded dance-off following the public vote.
And after they took to the dance floor with their professional partners to perform their routines for a second time, it was ultimately Nikita and her dance partner Gorka Márquez who were sent packing by the judges in a unanimous vote.
Craig Revel Horwood was the first judge to deliver his verdict, explaining that he was saving Zara and Graziano because they “had both technique and theatricality.”
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Next, Motsi Mabuse said that although both couples gave it their best shot, one couple’s mistakes “were quite visible” and so chose to save Zara and Graziano.
Anton Du Beke added a third vote for Zara, saying: “I did think both couples danced better in the dance off, unfortunately there were a couple of small mistakes from one of the couples, so the couple I would like to save is Zara and Graziano.”
While Shirley Ballas' choice was inconsequential given that Zara and Graziano had already secured three votes, the head judge said that she would also have saved the couple if it had come down to her.
Speaking after the verdict had been delivered, Nikita said: “I don’t want to leave yet, I feel like I’ve let him down. I’ve had the best time and I love all my Strictly family, I’m going to miss you all. This has been a dream come true, I’m so grateful. I’ve got to say the biggest thankyou to Gorka, he has been the biggest support and I’ve had the best time ever.”
Gorka was then asked by Tess about how proud he is of Nikita, to which he said: “I am beyond proud of her, for someone that doesn’t have any dance experience or performance experience to come on this show and dance in front of millions of people – for three weeks, I think it’s incredible."
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He continued: "You should be very proud of yourself, you have never let me down and I am very proud of you. This show is going to teach you so many things about yourself that you can take with you and I take incredible memories. I’ve never laughed so much in three weeks than I did with you!”
Sunday’s Results show also featured a Barbie-inspired routine from the professional dancers, and a performance from of Showed Me (How I fell In Love With You) from Madison Beer.
Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One at 6:30pm on Saturday 14th October 2023. Check out more of our Entertainment coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.
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