Strictly: Toyah Wilcox and Neil Jones are voted off show
Neil Jones opened up candidly about his partnership with Toyah Willcox discussing their early departure from Strictly Come Dancing.
The dancing duo, who were the second to exit this year's competition, faced a tough weekend after winding up in a segundo dance-off.
During Movie Week, Toyah transformed into The Little Mermaid antagonist Ursula, performing a powerful samba to the song Poor Unfortunate Souls.
However, their stint as undersea villains wasn't enough to keep them afloat on the BBC One show. On Sunday night's nail-biting face-off Neil and Toyah went toe-to-toe with former footballer Paul Merson and his pro partner Karen Hauer.
Despite reprising their enchanting movie-themed performances, it was curtains for Toyah and Neil when the judges unanimously voted to spare Paul and Karen another week in the contest.
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Taking to the social platform X, previously known as Twitter, Toyah gave a heartfelt thanks: "Thanks for all your support, it's been a great ride. Thank you to the entire Strictly team for one of the most exciting experiences of my life, and Neil you are my rock xxx."
Breaking their silence on their disappointing result, Toyah and Neil joined the guest sofa on the popular spin-off, It Takes Two, reflecting on their brief but memorable Strictly journey, reports the Manchester Evening News.
In a conversation with host Fleur East, 1980s singer-songwriter Toyah expressed her disappointment at leaving the show early but refused to let it overshadow the fantastic time she had.
She said: "I was not off first, which meant a lot to me. I've had the most brilliant life-affirming experience in the last two months, I'm in a good place."
Professional dancer Neil assured Toyah that they would stay in touch "for life" as he said they had a lot of fun during rehearsals.
He added: "We've had really great conversations as well, and it was so nice to hear you've been waiting so long to do the show and it's brilliant when she came to the show and she asked for me, that meant a lot to me."
Toyah also shared her hope that her stint on Strictly Come Dancing would inspire those who believe "age is the end" to realise that everyone deserves a positive and brilliant experience every day.
Reflecting on her motivation to challenge age stereotypes by participating in the show, Toyah said taking part in the show has made her feel healthier.
She stated: "It's incredibly important that everyone has a good day every day of their lives. I'm 66, I've never been shy about that, and I have to say that Strictly has made me feel so incredibly healthy, which I love.
"But we all deserve every day of our life, no matter what age we are, for it to be a positive and brilliant experience, and if I can put that across to people who are feeling that age is the end, then I've done a good job."
Strictly Come Dancing It Takes Two continues weekdays on BBC One from 6:30pm.
Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday on BBC One from 6:20pm
