Rose Ayling-Ellis has revealed how Dan Walker would vote for her over himself each week while he was on Strictly Come Dancing.
The EastEnders star has heaped praise on the BBC Breakfast presenter, who was voted off the show last weekend, telling of how he had been a huge support to her.
Speaking to HuffPost UK, Rose said: “I love Dan, he’s so lovely and he’s been supporting me since day one. He keeps telling me he did one little vote for me, he always gives me a vote. I’m like, ‘You should be voting for yourself!’ It was really, really sweet.
“And he absolutely enjoys the experience of it. He’s such a happy man.”
Her dance partner Giovanni Pernice also applauded Dan’s attitude, adding: “He ended up loving dancing and that’s what you want from your celebrity. When they come to the show, as a pro, you want them to enjoy the experience and Dan really fell in love with dancing.
“He missed the semi-final but I think he’s quite happy with that. I can call him a dancer. He gives positivity to everybody.”
Dan had faced a tough time on social media and in some areas of the press, who claimed he shouldn’t have made it so far into the competition.
Of the reaction, Giovanni added: “Nobody listens to press and social media. You only listen to press and social media when it is positive, not when it is negative.”
Having made the semi-final alongside AJ Odudu, Rhys Stephenson and John Whaite, Rose admitted she “didn’t expect” to still be in the competition.
“I’m just going to go and enjoy myself and that’s it, that’s all I can do,” she said.
“Giovanni has taught me that the only thing I can control is my dance. I can’t control what the judges think, I can’t control what the public think. The only thing I can control is my dance, so I’m just going to enjoy it and think about it from beginning to end and focus.”
Read the full interview with Rose and Giovanni on HuffPost UK this Sunday.
Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturday and Sunday night on BBC One.
