t was one of many caustic social media posts from disgruntled viewers, made all the more cutting given Strictly’s theme on Saturday night was musicals.
‘Look, it’s Amber doing her day job,’ swiped the critical fan.
They were, of course, referring to Amber Davies, the ambitious Love Island winner from Wales, who also happens to be a trained dancer and has spent the past five years of her showbusiness career appearing in West End shows such as 9 To 5, the musical based on Dolly Parton’s life, and Back To The Future.
Next year, she will play the lead in Legally Blonde: The Musical.
Since joining Strictly Come Dancing as a replacement for fellow Love Island winner Dani Dyer, who fractured her ankle just days before the first live show, Amber, 29, has been lambasted for the fact she trained at London’s Urdang Academy, a prestigious conservatoire offering vocational training in dance and musical theatre.
Indeed, she moved to the capital aged 16 to pursue her dreams of a career in the West End.
Given her day job, it was perhaps not a surprise that Amber, from Denbigh, North Wales, scored a perfect 40 out of 40 for her Guys And Dolls-themed charleston with her dance partner Nikita Kuzmin.
Love Island star Amber Davies is a trained dancer and has spent the past five years of her showbusiness career appearing in West End shows such as 9 To 5, the musical based on Dolly Parton ’s life, and Back To The Future
It is the only time in Strictly’s history that a couple have scored top marks in musicals week. However, despite her perfect performance, Amber last night found herself in the bottom two once the public’s vote was taken into account.
She then had to fight it out in the dance-off with another trained dancer, Emmerdale actor Lewis Cope – last night’s eventual loser – who began his career as a child actor appearing in a West End production of Billy Elliot The Musical.
Cope, 30, scored 35 out of 40 for his salsa to Dance At The Gym from West Side Story with popular professional partner Katya Jones.
Two of the other quarter finalists, EastEnders actress Balvinder Sopal and influencer George Clark, also scored 35, with former England footballer Karen Carney and her dance partner Carlos Gu trailing just one point behind at 34.
And yet, despite this trio being deemed the poorer dancers, they flew through to next week’s semi-finals, leading one Strictly insider to speculate that, this year, viewers want one of these ‘underdogs’ to win.
Amber, from Denbigh, North Wales, with her dance partner Nikita Kuzmin
Emmerdale actor Lewis Cope, who began his career as a child actor appearing in a West End production of Billy Elliot The Musical. Cope, with his popular professional partner Katya Jones
‘Amber was far and away the highest scorer so she must have got a very, very low vote from the public to land her in the bottom two,’ revealed my source.
‘The production team are certain that the viewers are not wanting what Amber is offering.
‘They don’t want her to win.
They don’t also seem to want Lewis to win. Both Amber and Lewis have long dancing histories and, while they might be delightful to watch, which is what Strictly viewers have historically wanted and voted for, the tides have changed.
‘There is now a protest taking place to stop these two getting to the final.
‘They want the underdogs. They want to see someone win who hasn’t danced for a living.’
Fans of the BBC1 programme certainly couldn’t have made this clearer in Saturday’s public vote.
Balvinder was absolutely stunned when she escaped the dreaded dance-off – something she has been forced to endure five times since the beginning of the series.
She was an early favourite to leave, but someone familiar with the show told me: ‘She has hung on in there in a way we have never seen before, it’s almost like the viewers have changed their tune on her and now they have got behind her. She can’t believe it.’
Then there’s Karen, who at the beginning of the series was written off as an early evictee.
But, like her fellow underdogs, she has defied the odds and stayed in thanks to a handful of stunning performances.
Show sources tell me that her rivals are ‘certain’ she will make it through to the final on December 20. ‘Karen was written off as a former Lioness who would struggle to dance,’ said one show snitch.
The dancing couple scored a perfect 40 out of 40 for her Guys And Dolls-themed charleston
‘She didn’t have a huge base of supporters so even the production staff thought she would last a week or two. Now she’s a dead cert for the final.’
The favourite though is George, thanks to his huge social media following, who are voting in their droves to keep him in. He has absolutely no dance experience either but this is clearly proving to be the winning factor this year.
BBC bosses have become acutely aware that Shirley Ballas and her colleagues on the judging panel are proving less popular with viewers.
They maintain that they are just doing their job, which is to judge the best dancer performing in front of them.
But this does not appear to be cutting it with fans, who took to social media to criticise them for having ‘po-faced views’ towards the contestants that have to work harder to learn their routines because they are not trained dancers.
‘At the end of the day who wins isn’t down the judges,’ says my Strictly source.
‘The final is purely a public vote and that’s the time for the audience to be heard – no matter what the judges want. There will only be one winner in this battle: The great British public.’
