Dancefloor sensation and judge on The Greatest Dancer Oti Mabuse has spoken about her trepidation about having to form a new partnership after Jaime Laing was forced to pull out of the Strictly Come Dancing following an injury.
Oti and Jamie promised to be something of a Strictly power couple.
His enthusiasm and Oti’s choreography skills, which do so much to showcase her partner’s qualities, looked to be a dream match.
Sadly, their partnership ended before the show began in earnest.
Jamie injured his foot prior to the first live show and he was ruled out of taking any further part in Strictly on medical advice.
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What happened next is now part of Strictly Come Dancing history and is one of the show’s greatest stories.
Kelvin Fletcher, known for playing Andy Sugden on Emmerdale, was drafted in last minute and his impact was immediate.
Kelvin and Oti scored a massive 32 with their first dance, a Samba, which stunned the judges.
Even Craig Revel Horwood, who laid into Kelvin’s first dance, ended his critique with unusual praise: “But God works in mysterious ways. Amazing.”
Oti laughed, but did express sadness at being robbed of the experience of performing with him: “I was really looking forward to dancing with Jamie.”
It was then she revealed her concern: “The thing is I didn’t know what to expect when Kelvin came in, and when Jamie left.”
Surprised to hear there was any doubt about his ability, Simon commented on that first dance: “Week one, he was off the scale!”
Oti hailed Kelvin’s work ethic for the reason behind their success on the show, as well as his continued success on the Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour: “He really, really, really worked hard and I think that went on to prove… now he’s on tour and he’s winning every single day. He’s absolutely smashing it.”
