"You don't always have to be the best, but if you enjoy something then why shouldn't you have a go at it?"
Strictly Come Dancing has announced its 2024 finalists, as the eleventh couple exits the competition.
Yesterday's (December 7) semi-final saw a Strictly first, with Craig Revel Horwood awarding JB Gill a 'Hollywood handshake', in the presence of Bake Off judge Paul Hollywood. However, tonight's results show meant another two couples were at risk of leaving the competition, narrowly missing out on a place in the coveted final.
It was Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec who found themselves in the dance-off against Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał, as both couples performed again for the judges.
Tasha and Aljaž danced their Waltz to '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman' by Aretha Franklin. Then, Pete and Jowita performed their Argentine Tango to 'Bitter Sweet Symphony' by The Verve.
After winning the majority vote from the judges, Tasha and Aljaž danced into the final, eliminating Pete and Jowita from the competition.
Pete described his time on the show as "wild", telling host Tess Daly: "I've been quite honest about the fact that I didn't necessarily want to do this [Strictly] in the first place, but everyone else wanted me to do it, and I am so, so glad that I did it!
"You don't always have to be the best, but if you enjoy something then why shouldn't you have a go at it? I've tried my best from day one, I said I was in for a penny, in for a pound and I've done it, it's been beautiful."
Speaking about his dance partner Jowita, Pete said: "There's a lot of things I'm going to take away from this, but one of the most special things is you [Jowita] and I mean that, because you're one of the most incredible people – not just as a dancer – but as a person.
"You've been a ray of sunshine for me. You've helped me through things in the past three months that I didn't think I could do and you made me believe in myself and that means more to me than anything."
Meanwhile, Jowita thanked Pete for his "trust" in her, and praised his "hard work", "commitment" and "heart". She added: "For me, every dance was special… even the Cha-Cha in Blackpool! Remember on day one you said 'I'm not going to stay long in this competition because I cannot dance' but now I can say to you, yes you can."
The remaining four couples will be back next week (December 14) for the Grand Final. Each finalist will perform three dances – their favourite dance of the series, the judges' pick and a spectacular show dance – before one couple lifts the iconic Glitterball Trophy.
