Craig Revel Horwood lets slip who he wants to win Strictly final

15 December 2023 , 12:36

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Craig Revel Horwood lets slip who he wants to win Strictly final

Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood has let slip who he would be happy to get their hands on the glitterball trophy - one day before the final.

This weekend Layton Williams, Bobby Brazier and Ellie Leach will battle it out for the ultimate prize in the BBC dance competition, with viewers given the ultimate power as on the night the judges' scores will count for nothing.

Longest-serving judge Craig, who has watched over 20 Strictly finals, appeared on Good Morning Britain on Friday in the build up to the hotly-anticipated showdown on Saturday night. Craig could not hide his excitement when talking about Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin.

The judge heaped praise on their flawless performances, particularly their Charleston to Fit As A Fiddle for which they received a perfect '40.' Good Morning Britain hosts Ben Shepherd and Charlotte Hawkins quizzed Craig on his opinion on each of the finalists, with viewers observing how the dance star's face lit up while talking about Layton.

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Speaking about Layton's performance the star, 58, said: “It was absolutely fantastic. I loved loved loved that Charleston. It was a dance you could put on stage. It was really really difficult. The flips and all of that. I mean some people can learn that but you're likely to get a broken ankle.And it takes a partnership."

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He added: "What's so special about it is they're very very equal in ability and talent and actually Layton does push Nikita as well. They had sync problems before. Dancing in different rhythms. They managed in that Charleston to get it together."

Realising that Craig was talking a lot about Layton, Charlotte then asked who he would like to see crowned winner. In response he said: "It could be any one of them. Bobby has come up the ranks. It’s great to see him come up against Ellie, who is spectacular." Despite Ellie executing faultless performances, Craig admitted: "I haven’t given her a ten yet, and my scores don’t count tomorrow.I don’t really know why we have to score (in the final). It’s just to give the audience guidance."

But the judge's comments about Layton's Charleston does not appear to be a shared sentiment. One person wrote on social media: "The Charleston like their paso was out of sync in parts & yet the judges ignored it. Meanwhile Ellie did faultless dances with no criticism & yet she didn't get 10's from Craig!”

Another tweeted: “@GMB Craig Revel Horwood described @LaytonWilliams and @Nikitakuzmin as being of equal talent. Well they shouldn't be as one is the professional dancer and the other 'isn't'. Has the BBC put two trained dancers together??”

This comes after Layton thanked Strictly professional Robin Windsor for asking the public to stop bullying him. Layton has been the target of abuse since he joined the show after it emerged that he had a background in dance. Robin took to X, formerly known as Twitter, and candidly penned: "STOP this hatred for @LaytonWilliams it’s BULLYING ffs. The poor guy sees all these comments everyone tags him in - how is that supposed to make him feel."

Layton replied: "Thanks, Robin. Luckily I have thick skin but it's so draining that so-called 'Strictly fans' go out of their way to drag me down to lift others up. Their fave couples would be SO embarrassed by their comments & so should they. They'll never dim my shine. Big love x."

In a bid to show support, Robin sent him another message saying: "Remember you are a STAR and an inspiration to so many - including myself - good luck in the final next week and SLAYYYYYYYYYYY." But this is not the first time Layton has been forced to shut down negative comments. Back in October, he wrote on social media: "Instead of coming at me with hateful comments, use your energy to shower your fave celeb with love instead. Pretty sure it will make us all feel much better! #ChooseJoy x."

Lucretia Munro