Strictly Come Dancing has been embroiled in a ‘sexism’ controversy following the first dance off and elimination of the 2024 series.
Olympic swimmer Tom Dean, alongside his professional dance partner Nadiya Bychkova, was the first celebrity to be eliminated from the competition after a dance-off with Toyah Willcox and her pro partner Neil Jones.
This marks the first time Ukrainian former Playboy model Nadiya has had a partner on the show since 2022, having been dropped in 2023 to give Luba Mushtuk a chance in the main lineup. Neil Jones has also been without a celebrity for several years.
After the public vote, the gold-medallist swimmer, 24, faced singer and actress Toyah Willcox, 66, in the dance-off. Following both couples’ second performance, the judges delivered their verdicts, with Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse both choosing to save Willcox and Jones while Anton Du Beke opted to save Dean and Bychkova.
Head judge Shirley Ballas had the deciding vote and chose to save Willcox and Jones. However, BBC viewers are furious at the decision, with some arguing that Tom was only eliminated because the series has too few women this year and show bosses didn’t want to lose a woman too early.
Strictly viewers believe Tom was booted off the BBC show due to the line-up’s lack of female contestants (
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The lineup has just six women out of 15 celebrities in 2024 and some viewers felt that the decision to save Toyah and send Tom home could have been motivated by a desire to keep the numbers balanced in the early stages, reports the Express.
@marciehatter didn’t hold back, tweeting: “That #StrictlySpoiler is quite unbelievable tbh. Fair enough that they both ended up in the bottom two, but he must have forgotten all the steps for the judges to save her over him? ! ! Or could it be because they only have 5 female contestants this year? “.
Meanwhile, @survivininthe20s speculated on gender ratios, remarking: “Smells like a balance up the men VS women numbers.” Shocked @meghanmcflygd posted: “#strictlyspoiler I did not see that coming. IF this is 100% true, then it is absolutely shocking and not fair. The person saved should not, repeat NOT have been saved. Enough said… #wow”. And @fansvfavourites didn’t mince words, venting their frustration with: “i genuinely don’t think i’ve ever been more p**** off if i’m being honest. heads will roll. #StrictlySpoiler.”
Tom Dean was quick to express his sadness over leaving the BBC One show, following his elimination. Nadiya, on the other hand, took to Instagram to share her thoughts in a bombshell post. “I really appreciate all the messages but I’m not ready to talk about what happened tonight just yet”, she penned. Many of her 193k followers took to the comment section, with Zoe Ball writing: “love you Lady. gutted for you and Tom.” Other celebrities followed suit soon after.
When asked by Tess Daly about her and Tom’s time on the show, Nadiya gushed: “To get to know him, he’s not just a three-time Olympic champion he’s a true gentleman and he taught me how to work really hard and how to put everything in. And you know what? On this programme, sometimes to win, you don’t need to win, and that’s how I feel this year.” The remaining 14 couples will take to the dancefloor next week for the fan favourite Movie Week Special.
