Aston Merrygold’s premature exit from Strictly Come Dancing has undoubtedly been the biggest shock of the series so far.
And appearing on spinoff show It Takes Two with pro partner Janette Manrara, the former JLS star revealed how he REALLY feels about saying goodbye to the dance floor earlier than expected.
Aston had been one of the bookies’ favourites to go all the way to the final but his Strictly experience went downhill after Craig Revel Horwood scored him just four of out of a possible 10 points on Saturday night.
And then head judge Shirley Ballas used her deciding vote to send him home after he landed in the dreaded dance-off against fellow popstar Mollie King.
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It led to complete shock among viewers, contestants and reportedly even Strictly bosses, with claims they were “horrified” to see such a talented dancer go home.
And, naturally, there were the usual cries of ‘FIX! FIX!’ and allegations of favouritism among the judges towards certain contestants.
Ever the gent, however, Aston insisted that although he was sad to leave, he’s just happy he even got to take part.
“I’m honestly gutted but, I mean, you have to take it on the chin as it’s such a brilliant show and, as I’ve said from day one, if I ever was to leave, I’m just happy I got to do it in the first place,” he said.
“And to do it with Janette was such a pleasure. I’m just happy to have done the show.”
Aston and Janette both admitted they were surprised by Craig’s exceedingly low score, with Aston saying he initially laughed because he was so shocked.
Janette added: “Everyone is entitled to an opinion and those scores and the judges’ critiques are just that: opinions.
“I do not agree with the score Craig gave us, but you have to respect his opinion and his number and his thoughts and take it as it comes.”
Aston said he’d been ready for the dance-off given his low position on the scoreboard, and said he looked at the positive, which was getting to dance twice in one night.
Janette suggested Aston’s shock exit meant it was more important than ever for fans to vote for their favourites and not presume anyone is safe.
“More than ever, and especially this season and seeing what happened to Aston, you have to vote for your favourites,” she said.
“You can never assume just because someone is a front runner and getting certain scores that they are safe. If you love them, vote for them!”
As for the future, Aston said he’ll keep on dancing – and he’s even in talks with a friend to open their own dance school in London!
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“I want to carry on teaching kids to dance,” he said. “I have all this energy and wisdom that Janette passed on to me. I enjoyed it so much that I want to give others the opportunity to do it as well.”
Best of luck!