Strictly fans figure out why Lewis Cope got axed and viewers are fuming

The Emmerdale star and Katya were unexpectedly dumped from the competition – but viewers think they know why.

Strictly Come Dancing fans were in shock tonight after a show favourite was unexpectedly dumped from the BBC series. Lewis Cope and Katya Jones are out after their West Side Story salsa failed to impress either the judges or the voting public in one of the biggest upsets in the show’s history.

While many couldn’t quite believe it, some insisted the writing had been on the wall for a while, with fans turning away from the polished and professional – Lewis has appeared in the dance musical Billy Elliott as a child – towards stars who had a story they could buy into – or, to use the TV term, a “journey”.

One fan posted: “Some of us want to see people on a ‘journey’ still. To see people improve each week. To find their confidence. To see people out of their comfort zone. I think thats what Karen, George and Balvinder represent. I for one am enjoying their journeys.”

Another agreed: “It shows thats not always the best dancers that prove popular, those with ‘more experience’ are not always followed. I didn’t know Bal, George or even Kaz before this series but they take my votes every week. Are they the best dancers, no, but they are warm, humble and a joy.”

Lewis Cope on Strictly

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Strictly’s Lewis Cope has been forced out of the competition(Image: Guy Levy/BBC/PA)

A third pointed out that the casting votes lie with the public, meaning Strictly is at its heart a popularity contest as much as a dancing one. They asked: “Is everybody forgetting its the public vote that puts people in the bottom two?

“There’s always an element of a popularity contest in Strictly. I didn’t vote for either Lewis or Amber. A 40 isn’t a guarantee of getting through.” Amber Davies picked up a perfect 40 score but still found herself in trouble after Saturday’s show, scraping through at the mercy of the judges.

Lewis and Katya on Strictly

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Katya and Lewis’ time on Strictly has come to an abrupt end(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Guy Levy)

Emmerdale star Lewis has long insisted that his dance past hasn’t helped him. He played Billy Elliott’s friend Michael in the hit musical about a boy who secretly takes ballet lessons. Lewis was also part of the dance troupe Ruff Diamond, who finished as runners-up on the Sky dance contest Got to Dance, which was fronted by Ashley Banjo, in 2013.

Defending himself from the ‘pro’ jibes, he told OK: “It’s strange to hear that I’m some kind of ‘professional dancer’. It’s been so long since I danced, and I never trained professionally. I did Billy Elliot The Musical when I was 11, but I wasn’t good enough to play Billy Elliot, so I played Michael and just did some tap dance.

Katya and Lewis hugging

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Katya and Lewis hugged after their final dance on the programme(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Guy Levy)

“After that, I joined a hip-hop dance crew where I did hip-hop with a group of six lads back in Hartlepool, we did amateur competitions. Then I went on to train to be an actor and I’ve only ever acted since.”

He said people claiming he was a professional was an “insult” to the hard work and long careers of the show’s pro dancers, adding: “This is the first time I’ve been inside a dance studio for 12 years. And now I’m working with people who are actually pro dancers like Katya, it feels like a bit of an insult to those guys. They’ve dedicated their lives to this and they’re incredible.”

Lewis and Katya have impressed Strictly’s judges for much of the competition. They topped the leaderboard on Halloween Week having bagged the first Perfect 40 of that year’s series. However, in the end, it was the public who had the final say on who stays and who goes.