Strictly: Montell Douglas talks about pressures of show
Montell Douglas may be facing the toughest week of Strictly Come Dancing yet, as fans are convinced the Gladiators star has been dealt the “kiss of death” ahead of Musicals Week.
The 38-year-old athlete is set to perform the notoriously challenging rumba alongside professional partner Johannes Radebe on Saturday night, but viewers believe this could spell the end of her journey on the hit BBC show.
Taking to online forums, fans expressed their fears for Montell’s fate in the competition. One wrote: “I fear Montell has received the kiss of death.” Another echoed: “Worried for Montell with a rumba this late in the series and her being in the bottom two so many times.”
Others were even more convinced that her place in the dance-off was inevitable, with one fan saying: “Oh they wanted Montell gone, this is the death sentence sadly. It’ll be her and JB bottom with her gone (you heard it here first).”
One predicted: “Unless Montell scores 40 and is the last to perform… it’ll be her and JB at the dance-off.” Meanwhile, one simply posted: “NOT THE RUMBA,” accompanied by crying face emojis.
The speculation comes after Montell survived last week’s dance-off against EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick, sparking controversy among fans.
Jamie, alongside his pro partner Michelle Tsiakkas, performed a Foxtrot to Stand By Me by Ben E. King, while Montell and Johannes danced their Quickstep to Get Happy by Ella Fitzgerald.
While the judges described the decision as difficult, they unanimously chose to save Montell. However, some fans accused the panel of unfair treatment, claiming their critiques of Jamie throughout the series set him up for failure.
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One viewer took to X (formerly Twitter) to vent: “The judges getting their wish. Constantly heavy criticising Jamie now he’s bottom 2 #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing #SCD.”
Another wrote: “Jamie shouldn’t be in the dance-off. I wasn’t a fan, but the awful criticism he has had from 3 of the judges has been awful. Craig always critiques everyone fairly, but the others obvious bias.”
A third accused the judges of “engineered scoring,” saying: “So I see that the judges engineered scoring landed Jamie in the bottom two even though he is one of the best dancers in there. They used the same method they did with Shayne!”
However, others defended the judges' decision, with some saying, "it's a dance competition".
Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturday on BBC One and BBC iPlayer at 7.05pm
