Why are you not a favorite to win?

Strictly Come Dancing’s Layton Williams is the show’s top dancer this year, but Coronation Street star Ellie Leach remains the favorite to win the glitter ball. The Bad Education star has the highest score in all 12 weeks of the BBC dance series so far: 116. And in week 11 he became the series’ first celebrity contestant to score a perfect 40 on his Two-step.

Williams, 29, reached the final alongside soap stars Leach and EastEnders actor Bobby Brazier, who scored 111 and 107 respectively. But the bookmakers place Ellie Leach and her partner Vito Coppola as the favorites to win Strictly 2023 with the latest betting.es odds of 1/8. Williams and her professional partner Nikita Kuzmin come in second place with odds of them taking the shiny ball game at 13/2.

Strictly love a helpless

Strictly, viewers tend to favor the underdogs, with recent winners including wildlife presenter Hamza Yassin, EastEnders star Rose Ayling-Ellis and actor and comedian Bill Bailey. For fans of the show, it’s about the ‘journey’ of watching a celebrity go from awkward and insecure to a confident performer.

And so there has also been a history of backlash against Strictly contestants who have a background in dance or dance training, even if it was when they were kids at drama school. As a result, Williams has faced hateful online trolling for being a part of the show.

Williams studied street dance and ballet and performed on stage in the West End musicals Billy Elliot, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and Thriller, in which he played a young Michael Jackson. As a child he trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theater Arts in London and, as a result, appeared in the CBBC documentary series School for Stars.

Williams received the highest score from Strictly judges in Week 2 for her Quickstep and has topped the leader board for seven weeks out of 12.

To break the rules

Although he has demonstrated his flexibility and gymnastic skills during his performances on the show, he has been criticized by the judges for his relaxed posture and ballroom dancing style, particularly when dancing on hold, rather than alone.

The story continues

Head judge Shirley Ballas suggested he broke ballroom dancing rules and said she would have sent him home after dancing with Angela Scanlon in week 10, when he performed an America Smooth to Bjork’s It’s Oh So Quiet. But other celebrities and dancers who have participated in Strictly have spoken out in his defense.

Team Layton

Dame Arlene Phillips has said it will be a “tragedy” if Layton Williams doesn’t win the show. The former Strictly head judge is a musical theater choreographer and has worked with Williams. She told the Mirror: “Unless the public get behind Layton he won’t win and in many ways I think that’s a tragedy because yes, he has danced but the strength and personality that Layton puts into him is his. “

Phillips, who judged Strictly for the first six series, said of Layton’s dancing experience: “It’s no more an unfair advantage than the other dancers they’ve had, like Ashley Roberts from the Pussycat Dolls. They’ve had people show up before and dance… There was always anger from certain members of the audience because they had danced before…” And he added, “Am I biased about Layton?” Completely. I want him to win. Because Layton has worked so hard for everything he has and everything he does.”

Former Strictly professional Robin Windsor, who worked on the show between 2010 and 2013, spoke out on social media and called on trolls to leave Williams alone. He wrote on social media platform “They should be ashamed.” yourselves What happened to being KIND? [sic]”.

Neil Jones is a professional dancer who joined the show in 2016. He previously insisted that Williams still deserved a place in the competition as she could improve her Latin and ballroom technique each week. Jones told OK!: “Layton is a dancer but he’s never danced Latin, it’s different. He’s doing a great job and I really feel like we’re going to see the growth in him, and that’s when people are going to change their opinions.”

Professional dancer James Jordan worked on Strictly for eight series between 2006 and 2013. He said of Williams’ Charleston, which gave him a perfect 40: “I thought it was perfection.” Writing on your Hello! The Jordan Magazine column said: And I’ve never said that in all the years. It was perfection. Now, I know there will be people at home saying, ‘But he’s a professional dancer,’ and I understand that. He has a big advantage. “But you still have to admire the fact that it was, in my opinion, the best dance ever on Strictly.”

Ellie Leach’s Perfect Trip

Corrie star Leach, 22, was a child actress, taking part in the soap when she was just 10 and recently leaving the cobbles after 12 years. She has no known dance training, but she got off to a good start in Week 1, with a score of 29 for her Jive, the same score as Williams. Leach didn’t manage to top the leaderboard until Week 6, with his Salsa to Murder On The Dancefloor in Halloween Week. But viewers and judges continue to be impressed by her visible improvement week after week, as well as her dedication to rehearsals and her sheer joy in performing.

Leach has also made headlines regarding his close relationship with his professional dance partner Coppola. The pair appear to have become very close over the 12 weeks and even shared a kiss on the dance floor after the fiery Rhumba.

If there’s one thing Strictly viewers love even more than an underdog: it’s a love story. The infamous Strictly curse has seen many celebrities end relationships after falling for their dance partners. And experts agree that spending so much time together, getting physical exercise and expressing passion on the dance floor, it’s no wonder Strictly can be a recipe for love.

The Strictly Come Dancing 2023 final airs live on BBC One on Saturday December 16 at 7pm.

Read more: Strictly Come Dancing

See: Layton Williams shuts down criticism strictly