Strictly Come Dancing’s Layton Williams is the best dancer on the show this year but Coronation Street star Ellie Leach is still the favorite to win the sparkle ball. The Bad Education star has the highest score so far in the 12 weeks of the BBC dance series with 116 points. And in week 11, she became the first celebrity contestant of the series to score a perfect 40 points with her Paso Doble.
Williams, 29, made it to the final along with soap stars Leach and EastEnders actor Bobby Brazier, who received 111 and 107 points respectively. But bookmakers name Ellie Leach and partner Vito Coppola as favorites to win Strictly 2023, with bettingsites.co.uk’s latest odds of 1/8. Williams and pro partner Nikita Kuzmin are in second place and their odds of winning the sparkle ball are 13/2.
He definitely likes the skinny
Between recent winners such as wildlife presenter Hamza Yassin, EastEnders star Rose Ayling-Ellis and actor and comedian Bill Bailey, viewers tend to favor the decidedly underdog. For fans of the show, it’s about the ‘journey’ that follows a celebrity as she goes from awkward and indecisive to confident.
And so there’s also a history of backlash against contestants who definitely have a background in dance or dance training, even if it’s as a child in stage school. As a result, Williams faced hateful trolling online for being a part of the show.
Williams trained in street dance and ballet and appeared on stage in the West End musicals Billy Elliot, Everyone’s Talking About Jamie and Thriller, in which he played the young Michael Jackson. As a child, she studied at the Italia Conti Academy of Theater Arts in London, which led to her starring role in CBBC’s documentary series School for Stars.
Williams received the highest score from the Strictly judges in Week 2 for her Quickstep and has topped the leaderboard in seven of the 12 weeks.
bending the rules
Although she showed off her flexibility and gymnastics skills during her performances on the show, she faced criticism from the judges for her relaxed posture and ballroom style, especially when dancing in the hold and not on her own.
Head judge Shirley Ballas suggested she was bending the rules of ballroom dancing and said she would send her home after her America Smooth dance to Bjork’s It’s Oh So Quiet with Angela Scanlon in Week 10. But other celebrities and dancers who appeared on Strictly have spoken out in her defence.
Team Layton
Dame Arlene Phillips said it would be a “tragedy” if Layton Williams did not win the competition. The former Strictly head judge is a musical theater choreographer and has worked with Williams. He told the Mirror: “Unless the public gets behind Layton he’s not going to win and in many ways I think it’s a tragedy because yes he danced but the strength and personality that Layton brings to it is his own. “
Phillips, who reviewed the first six series as Strictly, said of Layton’s dance background: “It’s no more an unfair advantage than other dancers like Pussycat Dolls Ashley Roberts.” There have been people who have come and danced before… There was always anger in some parts of the public that they had danced before…” He added: “Am I biased about Layton? Completely. I want him to win. Because Layton has worked hard for everything he has and everything he has done.”
Former professional Robin Windsor, who worked on the series between 2010 and 2013, spoke on social media and called on trolls to leave Williams alone. He wrote on social media platform [sic]”
STOP this hatred @LaytonWilliams this is BULLYING ffs
The poor guy sees all these comments with everyone tagging him – how will that make him feel?
You should all be ashamed of yourselves
What happened to KIND? #sanity
— Robin Windsor (@Robinwindsor) December 10, 2023
Neil Jones is a professional dancer who joined the show in 2016. He had previously insisted Williams still deserved to take part in the competition because he could improve his Latin and Ballroom technique each week. Jones told OK!: “Layton is a dancer but he’s never danced Latin Ballroom, this is different. He’s doing a great job and I really feel like we’ll see his evolution and that’s when people will change their views.”
Professional dancer James Jordan worked on eight series of Strictly between 2006 and 2013. “I thought it was perfect,” he said of Williams’s Charleston, which gave him a perfect 40. Hello! magazine column Jordan said: And I’ve never said that in all these years. It was perfect. Now I know there will be people at home who say, ‘But she’s a professional dancer,’ and I understand that. It has a huge advantage. But you still have to admire the fact that this is the best dancing ever done on Strictly.”
Ellie Leach’s perfect journey
Leach, the 22-year-old star of Corrie, was a child actor who joined the soap when he was just 10 and recently left the series after 12 years. She has no known dance training, but she got off to a strong start in Week 1, scoring 29 points on Jive, the same score as Williams. Leach did not manage to top the leaderboard until Week 6 with Salsa to Murder on the Dance Floor during Halloween Week. But viewers and judges continued to be impressed by her visible improvement week after week, as well as her dedication to rehearsals and pure joy when performing on stage.
Leach also set tongues wagging about his close relationship with professional dance partner Coppola. The pair are seen getting very close over the 12 weeks and even kissed on the dance floor after the steamy Rhumba.
If there’s one thing audiences absolutely love more than underdogs, it’s a love story. The infamous Strictly curse has caused many celebrities to end their relationships after falling in love with their dance partners. And experts agree that spending so much time together, getting physical and bringing passion on the dance floor can definitely be the recipe for love.
The final of Strictly Come Dancing 2023 will be broadcast live on BBC One on Saturday, December 16 at 7pm.
Read more: Definitely Come Dancing
Watch: Layton Williams is definitely shutting down the criticism