Strictly’s Angela Rippon at centre of ‘fix’ storm as she is saved for Blackpool show amid ‘overmarking’ claims
STRICTLY is facing a fix row after Angela Rippon was again saved by judges after ending up in the bottom two.
The 79-year-old was picked ahead of newsreader Krishnan Guru-Murthy, 53, and partner Lauren Oakley – who are now out – in the dance-off despite his consistent improvements.
It means she will perform at Blackpool’s Tower Ballroom at the weekend, having hosted Come Dancing there in the Eighties and Nineties.
A TV insider said: “The BBC have been praying she would make Blackpool so they can celebrate her links.
“But it has not gone unnoticed that she has been consistently saved.”
Viewers alleged it was a fix during Saturday show when judge Motsi Mabuse suggested she already had a spot in next week’s show.
She told Angela: “I love to see a dance where I can recognise the dance without music, meaning your arms, your shape, your posture said, ‘This is a paso, and this paso is going to Blackpool, ladies and gentlemen’.”
One fan on X, previously Twitter, wrote: “This is the first time I think Strictly might be a fix.
“I cannot understand how Angela R is still there?”
The Rip Off Britain host and partner Kai Widdrington were saved in last week’s dance-off against Waterloo Road actor Adam Thomas, 35, too.
Fans have also claimed she has been over-marked during the series, scoring 32 points out of 40 for her paso doble on Saturday, despite slipping.
One fan wrote: “Angela had to readjust her position (a mistake?) yet no judge mentioned it and she was saved by them all?
“Almost like they need her to get to Blackpool.”
The BBC has been approached for comment