Professional dancer and a man who knows all about the pressures of the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom, James Jordan, has exclusively shared his thoughts on Thomas Skinner’s early exit from the show.
Paired with Amy Dowden, Mr Skinner’s Week Two Salsa fell flat with the judging panel and BBC viewers watching at home, ultimately landing him in the dreaded dance-off against Chris Robshaw.
The judges unanimously voted for Mr Robshaw and his pro partner, Nadiya Bychkova, to retain their place in the competition, leaving Mr Skinner admittedly “gutted” to lose his spot and Ms Dowden in tears.
Despite the embrace Mr Skinner received from his Strictly cast mates, social media was awash with his critics openly rejoicing at the news he wouldn’t be returning for another stage of the competition.
It was a familiar reception Mr Skinner faced throughout his Strictly journey, with the Apprentice star facing online vitriol for his openly patriotic posts and criticism of wokeness on his social media platforms.
He even had to confront one X user when they wrongly accused him of “homophobia” just hours after his Strictly exit.
Speaking to GB News in his role as entertainment betting expert at Freebets.com, the home of betting sites, Mr Jordan admitted Mr Skinner’s dancing ability meant it was probably correct that he was in line for an early exit, but felt the fury from the audience towards him was rather unjust.
“I mean, his dance was absolutely s***e, wasn’t it? Let’s be honest. He had, in my opinion, the worst piece of music I’ve ever heard on Strictly,” Mr Jordan began. “And when you think about the demographics that are voting, are they going to like that song for a Salsa? No, they’re not.
BBC Strictly: James Jordan and his wife Ola were regular pros on Strictly in the noughties and 10s
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“And he was dressed like a complete tool, as well. I’m not saying it was a stitch-up, but because of the controversy around him before he was on the show, it almost felt like a stitch-up for me.
“I don’t think he was given the best chance to stay in the competition with that song choice, with the costume, with the choreography.”
Mr Jordan didn’t lay all the blame at the producers’ doors, however. “He didn’t help himself by sticking his tongue out all the time. I don’t know why he was sticking his tongue out. I just thought the whole thing was pretty rubbish, really,” he quipped.
Turning his attention to the backlash that came Mr Skinner’s way, however, Mr Jordan was less than impressed. “The controversy around him before the show even started… he’s a bit right-wing. So what?” he mused.
“What’s he actually done that’s so bad? What’s he said that’s so bad? No one can say! They can’t say, ‘The reason I don’t like him is because he said X or Y’.
“So, what? Because he waves the English flag? Well, you should be able to wave an English flag. Does that make me right-wing? Well, no, it doesn’t. It’s okay to wave a Scottish flag, but it’s not okay to wave an English flag.
“See, you’re speaking to the wrong person here because I think the world and this country are becoming so weak and woke.
“You get someone on there, in my opinion, who’s a little bit more normal, and everyone goes, ‘Oh, he’s right-wing’. Well, he’s not right-wing, is he? Because what’s he done that’s right-wing?”
James Jordan knows all about the pressures of Strictly
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When asked if he felt the BBC was naive to the reception the online Left would fire Mr Skinner’s way, or whether it was expected and perhaps welcomed by bosses, Mr Jordan remained on the fence.
“It could be either or, couldn’t it?” he conceded. “I mean, I don’t believe the BBC wants Strictly to have that kind of reception because they’ve had enough with the chaperones and Giovanni [Pernice] and all that stuff that I think they probably wanted just a little bit of a quiet life this year.
“But I also feel that if someone is a little bit more on the right – we’ve got so many people on the flipping left on BBC, it’s kind of nice to even up a little bit, isn’t it? To show that the BBC does support or allows both sides on the show?
“I don’t think they necessarily would have wanted the controversy around it, but it’s funny how he was eliminated first. He wasn’t, in my opinion, given the best opportunity to stay in the competition.
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“I’m not saying he was ever going to be a good dancer. I’m not saying he was going to go a long way in the competition. I don’t think he was. But I do feel that he wasn’t given the best chance to stay in the competition with the song choices, costume, and choreography.”
Laying further into those who lodged complaints about Mr Skinner’s involvement, Mr Jordan continued: “Normal people can’t be a***d to ring and complain about s**t like that because they’re normal.
“It’s the lefties that get offended by everything. They’re the ones ringing up saying, ‘You can’t have someone like that on there.’
“I find it all really pathetic. It really annoys me,” he added.
BBC Strictly: Thomas Skinner’s Salsa had lifts aplenty
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BBCSince leaving the competition, Mr Skinner has returned to his day job as a mattress salesman but continues to update his fans on social media despite the mob attacking him from behind their keyboards.
However, in a worrying update shared on Thursday, Mr Skinner admitted he and his family were going through a “s*** time” after having to take his two-year-old twins to the hospital.
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“We are having a proper s*** time recently. My twins have spent all night in the hospital,” he began in an X post.
“Thank you to the wonderful NHS for looking after them. Back home with them now. They’ve both now had 2 fits each and it is so so scary.” (sic)