BBC Strictly Come Dancing star 'under pressure' as they face early exit from show
Strictly Come Dancing's Toyah Willcox has been dealt a new blow ahead of Saturday's second live show of the hit BBC One dance competition.
New set of celebrities prepare for Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing's Toyah Willcox has been dealt a new blow ahead of Saturday's second live show.
The legendary singer and TV presenter, 66, is one of 15 celebrities hoping to show off their moves on the iconic BBC One dance floor each week and she has been paired with professional dancer Neil Jones.
However, Toyah could face an early exit as she's the bookies' favourite to leave Strictly this weekend. Toyah is the 6-4 favourite with bookmaker Coral to be the first contestant to leave Strictly Come Dancing this weekend.
The actress and musician tops the betting ahead of Paul Merson, who is at 7-2 to leave, and Nick Knowles, who is 9-2 to depart.
Meanwhile, on the other hand, Tasha Ghouri is the 3-1 favourite to win, with JB Gill and Chris McCausland next best at 7-2. Talking about the new findings, Coral’s John Hill said: "Toyah Wilcox is under the most pressure for a big performance on Saturday night, as we make her the favourite to be the first contestant eliminated from this year’s series.
"Paul Merson and Nick Knowles are also the top end of the first elimination betting and are in danger of being in the dance-off this weekend."
It comes as Strictly pro Neil, 42, has broken his silence after landing at the very bottom of the leaderboard with Toyah following the first week of the BBC competition.
On Saturday night's first live show of the series, Toyah danced to Madonna’s Ray of Light with her professional partner Neil. They performed a tango – alongside Tom Dean and Nadiya Bychkova.
After their debut dance, the pair only scored a mere 12 points from the judging panel, consisting of Craig Revel-Horwood, Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Motsi Mabuse. It's the first time Neil has been partnered with a celebrity since 2021, when he danced alongside former EastEnders icon, Nina Wadia.
After making his comeback after three long years, Strictly viewers were disappointed to see Neil and celebrity partner Toyah at the bottom of the leaderboard - but the professional dancer is determined to come back better than ever with an epic performance this Saturday night. Neil broke his silence on his low score as he took to Instagram to address the results.
Sharing a clip of his performance with his 262,000 Instagram followers, the professional dancer wrote: "Okay, week one and what can I say. Firstly, I am having a blast with Toyah. Her love for the show and honesty I mean every part is incredible and she just brings joy into everyone's lives. I've always said I love a complete beginner and I'm standing by that because it is a joy to enter the studio every day with Toyah and watch her grow and learn.
"If you watched her on day one you will see how much Toyah has improved. So, we are starting our journey with a 12, and we will keep finding ways to direct her incredible energy. Let's go partner with week two."
Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday night at 6:15pm on both BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
