The seventh celebrity to be eliminated from Strictly Come Dancing in the 2025 series has been revealed after the results show, which was pre-recorded on Saturday night, leaked online.¹ TV personality and former I'm A Celebrity winner Vicky Pattison and her professional partner Kai Widdrington were the couple whose journey ended just one week before the coveted trip to the Blackpool Tower Ballroom (Radio Times, The Independent).²

The news has been met with significant backlash from fans who believed the couple were stronger than their bottom-two placement suggested.

The Heartbreak in the Dance-Off

Vicky Pattison and Kai Widdrington found themselves in the dance-off after receiving the joint-lowest score from the judges—27 points for their Jive to 'Sound of the Underground' by Girls Aloud—tied with EastEnders actress Balvinder Sopal and her partner Julian Caillon (The Pink Un).³

The two couples repeated their routines for the judges:⁴

• Balvinder Sopal and Julian Caillon: American Smooth to 'My Guy' by Mary Wells.⁵

• Vicky Pattison and Kai Widdrington: Jive to 'Sound of the Underground.'⁶

According to leaks and fan chatter on social media, the outcome was sealed by a devastating mistake. Multiple sources claimed that Vicky Pattison suffered a fall during her dance-off performance, a mishap that made the judges' decision unanimous (Entertainment Daily). All four judges—Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Anton Du Beke, and Head Judge Shirley Ballas—voted to save Balvinder and Julian, who have now survived the dance-off four times (HELLO!⁷ Magazine, The Guardian).

Fan Reaction and Emotional Exit

Despite her nerves and admitting that she "knew this week was a difficult one," the elimination was met with disappointment from viewers who saw Vicky as a popular figure and an improving dancer (The Mirror).⁸

• One fan called the result a "pure joke!" arguing that she only had one bad week (Express.co.uk).⁹

• Another commented, "Actually gutted.¹⁰ They had a rough week but that magnificent dance last week showed they had come so far" (Express.co.uk).¹¹

During her emotional exit interview, Vicky paid tribute to her professional partner, Kai Widdrington, saying: "I knew this week was a difficult one for me and I tried my hardest, as I have every week...¹² I don't want to sound too cheesy but [to Kai] you've been the best partner a girl can ask for. I'm so sorry I didn't get you to Blackpool but I feel like I've won just by having you as my partner" (HELLO! Magazine). She also emotionally referenced her journey with sobriety, noting, "I've never danced before sober and here I am – sober as a judge!" (The Mirror).¹³

The remaining seven couples heading to the iconic Blackpool Tower Ballroom next weekend are:

• Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin¹⁴

• Lewis Cope and Katya Jones

• Alex Kingston and Johannes Radebe

• La Voix and Aljaž Škorjanec

• Karen Carney and Carlos Gu

• George Clarke and Alexis Warr¹⁵

• Balvinder Sopal and Julian Caillon

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