Will Mellor has issued an apology to fans after he missed out on making the final of Strictly Come Dancing. The actor, from Stockport, was clearly disappointed as he became the eleventh celebrity to be eliminated from the dance contest, with days to go until the final of the 20th series of BBC One.
His dance partner Nancy Xu sobbed as she and Will spoke to Tess Daly after their exit was revealed. The pair gave it their all in the dance-off as they reperformed their couples' choice to a 90s Manchester-inspired medley after using the routine to close the semi-final on Sunday evening.
However, it wasn't enough to keep their place in the competition with three out of the four judges including Shirley Ballas, who has the casting vote if the result becomes deadlocked, opting to save Fleur East and Vito Coppola. The will now join Helen Skelton and Gorka Marquez, Hamza Yassin and Jowita Przystal, and Molly Rainford and Carlos Gu in the Strictly final on Saturday.
After the results, which were pre-recorded, aired on BBC One on Monday night, Will and Nancy appeared live on spin-off show It Takes Two as it moved to 9pm from its usual 6.30pm slot as a one-off to coincide with the changed schedules. And it quickly became emotional as the pair chatted to Rylan Clark about their exit.
As they continued to chat, things got more emotional as a look back at his Strictly journey and a surprise message from his wife and children left Will in bits. But it wasn't long before Will stepped in to console Nancy as she burst into tears live on the show.
"I am so grateful, thank you to this man, I couldn't even imagine the journey we had," the dancer was able to tell Rylan. "To see him not believing in himself, then slowly enjoying the dance on a Saturday night performing, then feeling satisfied and the smile on his face. Thank you so much."
Following his live TV appearance, Will, 46, took to Instagram to address his fans direct after their support throughout his three months in the dance competition. "I’ve just got home from doing Strictly It Takes Two," he said. "Obviously, you all know now that sadly I got voted out in the semi-final and I didn’t make the final. I fell at the final hurdle."
He then went on to apologise. "Sorry about that for anybody who has been voting for me," he said. "I did give it everything I’ve got, I tried my best and it wasn’t enough. Thank you all so much for your messages of support or your votes or anybody who’s got behind me. I really, really appreciate it. It means a lot.
"When you’re in that Strictly bubble, it’s all you think about when you’re training every day. It is on your mind and everyone who is supporting and voting for you. You really want to do well for them as well, and your family."
Will finished by saying: "I tried everything but it just wasn’t enough to get to that final. But thank you all so much. I just wanted to do a video to say that I appreciate the support. Enjoy your Christmas, see you in a bit." But Will's fans and celebrity pals were quick to show their support, including Gemma Atkinson who was also celebrating the fact her fiancee Gorka made it to the final with Helen.
And that's because, as fans know, Gemma and Gorka's daughter Mia, three, had a bit of a 'crush' on the Two Pints of Lager and Coronation Street actor and wanted to see him and her 'Papa' through to the final week. "There was tears in our house last night," Gemma, 38m typed to will.
"Mia was gutted bless her. You did Amazing will! Should be very proud, and you took me right back to my clubbing days with your dance!! Loved it!" Paddy McGuinness, show supported Will in the audience during the show's Blackpool week, replied: " Fantastic pal. Loved watching you in Blackers."
Strictly co-host Claudia Winkelman wrote: "You were BRILLIANT." And professional dancer Katya Jones added: "You did absolutely wonderfully Will!! You and Nancy were an awesome partnership!!! You made so many people proud!!!"
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