Strictly Come Dancing contestant Chris McCausland has been praised for performing a dance featuring a “poignant” blackout moment, imitating his own experience with blindness.
Comedian McCausland, 47, and his dance partner Dianne Buswell closed out Saturday’s live show with their couple’s choice to Instant Karma! (We All Shine On) by John Lennon.
The performance received rapturous applause from the audience and a score of 33 from the judges.
Craig Revel Horwood said the “poignant blackout moment” was “absolutely spectacular” while head judge Shirley Ballas told McCausland: “You come out every week with your heart on your sleeve, and you give us 100%.”
Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell (Ray Burmiston/BBC/PA)
At the beginning of the show TV presenter Claudia Winkleman said everyone at Strictly was sending professional dancer Amy Dowden “so much love” after it was announced on Monday that she had pulled out of the rest of the competition due to an injury.
“We cannot wait to see you back on this dance floor very, very soon,” she said to a round of applause.
Opening the show this weekend was Love Island star Tasha Ghouri and her dance partner Aljaz Skorjanec, who quickstepped to Fantasy by Mariah Carey.
The pair “offered everything we needed to see in a quick step”, according to Ballas, and they were awarded 37 points from the judges.
After their dance the terms and conditions were read out by RuPaul’s Drag Race star Michelle Visage who appeared from behind a gold-fringed curtain.
Tasha Ghouri and Aljaz Skorjanec (Guy Levy/BBC/PA)
Elsewhere on the show, judge Motsi Mabuse told singer Shayne Ward that his rumba with Nanxy Xu to Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper “was not one of your best dances”.
Ballas had a more positive outlook and said the two were beginning to develop a chemistry.
The pair were given 30 points.
Miranda star Sarah Hadland impressed with a number of “spectacular” lifts when the actress and her professional partner Vito Coppola performed an American Smooth to Proud by Heather Small.
They were awarded 33 points by the judges, who appeared to have mixed opinions with Revel Horwood criticising Hadland’s hand positions and Ballas asking her to focus on “neater, smaller details”.
In spite of this, the judges also had some positives with Revel Horwood saying: “The cartwheel, darling, into that lift was spectacular.”
One of Sarah Hadland’s lifts (Guy Levy/BBC/PA)
JLS singer JB Gill and his dance partner Lauren Oakley joint topped the judges’ leaderboard, alongside Ghouri and Skorjanec, with a samba that “stunned” the judges.
Commenting on their dance to Mas Que Nada by Sergio Mendes, judge Anton Du Beke said: “I am stunned, stunned. Last week. You did your couples’ choice and I said: ‘Please can you bring this moving forward?
“‘Just bring it and stick it on another dance.’ Man alive, did you bring it!”
Receiving less enthusiastic comments from the judges was EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick and his dance partner Michelle Tsiakkas.
Their Argentine tango to Do I Wanna Know? by the Arctic Monkeys landed them bottom of the pack, alongside Ward and Xu, with 30 points.
Also on the show, opera singer Wynne Evans was praised for improving his footwork after he took to the dancefloor to perform an American smooth to Grace Kelly by Mika.
Wynne Evans and Katya Jones (Guy Levy/BBC/PA)
Evans and his dance partner Katya Jones were awarded 32 points and surprised with a video from singer Mika, who wished the couple well.
Marking a comeback, Olympian Montell Douglas and dancer Johannes Radebe scored 36 for their paso doble to Lola’s Theme by The Shapeshifters.
Last week the couple were in the bottom two after failing to make an impression with their waltz to I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston.
They were saved by the judges, however, and former Olympic hockey player Sam Quek and professional dancer Nikita Kuzmin were eliminated from the show.
Whoever is voted out during this Sunday’s results programme will miss out on going to Blackpool next week.