Strictly Come Dancing star says 'she will be out' as they 'confirm' exit

Former Strictly Come Dancing champion Ola Jordan has hinted at an upcoming departure from the programme, while also tipping a contestant to potentially win the current series on BBC One.

The ballroom professional reflected on last Saturday's episode, where Dr Punam Krishan and her dance partner Gorka Marquez found themselves lagging behind on the score table.

During last weekend's competition on Dr Punam and Gorka experienced some difficulty in the ballroom, earning just 21 points for their heartfelt Viennese waltz to Billy Joel's She's Always A Woman To Me.

Judge Shirley Ballas seemed to praise the pair's pre-dance video that showed Dr Punam with her young son, remarking: "You are surprising yourself, and us, with the lovely delightful dancing you are doing. Just need to turn it up a little bit. Beautiful VT and I just think you are a doll."

Fellow judge Anton Du Beke encouraged Dr Punam to "share" her "beautiful dancing" more visibly and to perform with more assertiveness, whereas critical Craig Revel Horwood commented that the routine was lacking in both musicality and physical energy, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Fans of Strictly were quick to come to the defence of Dr Punam and Gorka's performance, arguing that it deserved a higher score, and their support saw the duo advance into week six of the landmark 20th season of Strictly, which airs this coming Saturday, October 26.

Speaking to Mecca Bingo, former Strictly professional Ola Jordan shared her insights on why the audience might be saving certain contestants despite low scores from the judges: "I think the bottom of the leaderboard very often gets saved. She did an okay job. For me, she was a little bit dragged around the floor by Gorka. She's definitely one of the weakest dancers left in a competition."

She analysed the current standings, noting the distinction between trained and untrained participants: "The leaderboard was right in some respect because you've got Paul, Punam, Pete and Sam in the bottom of the leaderboard, they are all non-dancers. The rest above have had some sort of dance-related training, maybe apart from Chris, but he's very good. The bottom four that are on the leaderboard are really pretty much not dancers."

Ola, who graced the ballroom from 2006 to 2015 and clinched victory in 2009, added her opinion on the prospects of one contestant: "I think she was just lucky with a good dance, to be honest. I think the next Latin dance she gets; she will be out."

However, she expressed optimism about comedian Chris McCausland's chances: "I definitely think Chris [McCausland] is going to go all the way. I think that Chris is very good. His bottom half is amazing, like his footwork and his timing, the Waltz timing was very nice, very crisp and very good. I'm very impressed."

Following Chris and his dance partner Dianne Buswell's recent performance in the show's renowned ballroom, they danced a stunning waltz to the Liverpool anthem You'll Never Walk Alone. This was a tribute to Chris' cherished home city and football club, which left the judges needing to regain their composure and viewers in tears.

The judges subsequently awarded them 35 out of a possible 40 points, their highest score of the series to date. They were later seen progressing to another week, which will be Strictly's yearly Halloween special.