HomeTVTony Adams becomes seventh celebrity to leave Strictly Come Dancing 2022

Tony Adams becomes seventh celebrity to leave Strictly Come Dancing 2022

Tony Adams has become the seventh celebrity to leave Strictly Come Dancing 2022.

The legendary Arsenal footballer and his professional partner Katya Jones were at the bottom of last night’s leaderboard, scoring 24 points out of 40 from the Strictly judges for their Jive to ‘Land Of 1000 Dances’ by Wilson Pickett. When combined with the viewers’ vote, Ton and Katya found themselves in the dreaded dance-off. They were due to face Kiss Radio DJ Tyler West and his partner Dianne Buswell, who received 31 points for their Paso Doble to ‘Unstoppable’ by ES Posthumus.

However, due to sustaining an injury on Saturday night’s show, Tony was unable to take part in the dance-off and he and Katya decided to withdraw from the competition. As a result, there was no dance-off this week and Tyler and Dianne were through to next week’s show in Blackpool.

When bidding farewell to Tony, head judge Shirley Ballas said: “Tony, from the very first moment you stepped foot on the floor with your tango, to the last moment and the last kick, you have given us 100% of your heart. You have grown week after week after week, you have become one of the nation’s favourite entertainers. On behalf of the judges, we’ve enjoyed watching every second, you are truly what this show is all about, and we can only wish you the very best as you move forward. Please carry on dancing, carry on entertaining people, because you are a star. Well done.”

Presenter Tess Daly also asked Tony about his experience on the show. He said: “It’s been emotional guys, I cried for the first month. I came in here with one message, if you’ve got an issue with mental health then please don’t suffer in silence and reach out for help.

“Little did I know that I was going to learn a lot about myself in the process. I thought this ‘journey’ rubbish was nonsense, but my god the rollercoaster of emotion. I’ve got to be honest, it’s tough, physically it’s really tough out there, but dancing is really fantastic for you. Go out there and enjoy it and pick up new skills and explore. I suppose I had better mention this one [Katya] hadn’t I, she is an exceptional human being, she really is.”

Katya was also asked if she had any words for Tony. She said: “Tony Adams, I will be forever grateful that I was partnered up with you, do you know what I loved? I loved us, I loved that we didn’t care what people thought, we did every single dance our way! You have come here with a message, you led by example, and put yourself out there, and showed everyone you can do anything. And everyone deserves love and to be loved! I love you.”

Tonight’s results show opened with one of the highlights of the Strictly Come Dancing calendar – the professional dancers’ touching Remembrance Sunday Ballroom routine, including a special guest appearance from Sheku Kanneh-Mason. There was also a performance from Zak Abel of their single ‘Same Boat’.

Tony and Katya will join Rylan and Janette Manrara for their first exclusive televised interview live on Strictly: It Takes Two on Monday 14th November on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.

The remaining eight couples and their professional partners will be back on the dancefloor next Saturday, when Strictly Come Dancing 2022 makes a trip to Blackpool’s legendary Tower Balloom – the first time the show has been there since 2019.

Strictly Come Dancing 2022 will return with a Blackpool Special on Saturday 19th November at 7.45 PM, with the Results Show on Sunday 20th November at 7.20 PM on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Laura Cooney
Laura Cooney
Laura has been writing for Entertainment Focus since 2016, mainly covering music (particularly country and pop) and television, and is based in South West London.

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