Strictly's Fleur East explains why she's 'grateful' to have been in dance off

Strictly Come Dancing's Fleur East has spoken out about her shock appearance in the dance off over the weekend. Fortunately for the singer and radio presenter, both she and pro dancer Vito Coppola survived to dance another day and it was the turn of Richie Anderson and Giovanni Pernice to go home.

Chatting to Rylan Clark on Strictly: It Takes Two on Tuesday, October 11, the former X Factor star said: "It was rough being in that dance off. It was awful." She then explained that there were two reasons as to why - firstly, the feeling of relief when she'd finished the dance the first time and secondly, her love for fellow contestant, Richie. On Monday's It Takes Two, Richie broke down in tears as he discussed his time on Strictly. You can read more about that here.

Despite feeling "awful" about having to dance a second time, Fleur did say she was "grateful" to have been in a dance off. "In a lot of ways, I'm actually grateful that we had that experience because it's made me realise how much I want to be here," Fleur added, commenting on how much of a good time she was having on the show.

Read more: Strictly viewers 'furious' as Richie Anderson and Giovanni Pernice leave show

Fleur said she was "grateful" to be in the dance off over the weekend (BBC)

During Movie Week, Fleur and Vito performed a Little Mermaid-inspired American Smooth. They danced to ‘Part of Your World’, which was sang by Jodi Benson in the film. The dance couple received a score of 29 from the judges. But despite not being at the bottom of the leader board, she found herself in the dance off after the public vote - much to her shock.

Fleur and Vito looked nervous as the judges made their decision (BBC)

It wasn't just Fleur who was shocked to be in the bottom two, her pro dancer Vito said: “The dance-off was unexpected, but it gave me another chance to dance with the little Fleurmaid. And I got so many messages from people saying, 'we didn't vote because we thought you were going to go through'. Sometimes people think, 'They're good, they'll be safe' and they don't vote – but people need to vote!"

Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One

READ NEXT:

• Dan Walker reflects on how Strictly partner Nadiya changed his life as he supports Matt Goss

• BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2022 results: Who has left the competition so far

• Zoe Ball says Richie Anderson's Strictly exit is 'totally undeserved'

• Richie Anderson breaks silence on 'short but sweet' Strictly journey after vote off

• Guardians Of The Galaxy director responds to Amy Dowden and James Bye's Strictly routine