The judges were in agreement

Our original quartet were reunited this weekend following two shows with Covid absences, and they mainly concurred on Saturday’s dances – though we still saw the odd scoring disparity. But it seemed like a straightforward call for all of them after a dance-off which featured that clear save from Odudu. 

Craig Revel Horwood said that Walker had done a great job in the dance-off but Odudu nailed her ending, so he was saving her. Motsi Mabuse agreed, concluding that Odudu had done the better job, while Anton Du Beke congratulated both couples but argued that Odudu had the edge. With the majority voting to send Walker home, once again head judge Shirley Ballas’s vote wasn’t needed, but she too would have saved Odudu based on those performances, she confirmed.

Rhys Stephenson avoids the dance-off

He’s endured three stints in the dreaded dance-off, with two coming in the past two weeks, but the CBBC presenter finally had a breather – and let out a primal roar when he heard the news, almost collapsing to the ground. It only took scoring three 10s and topping the leaderboard to secure his place. But Stephenson is still a likely contender for the next exit: his fanbase doesn’t seem to be as secure as the other celebrities’ and he’s a less consistent performer.

On the other hand, he doesn’t lack for energy – and he’ll need it when tackling two dances in the semi-final. Could he yet sneak a place in the grand final? His resilience has certainly been impressive, as has his recovery from those multiple dance-offs, so we shouldn’t write him off just yet.