Strictly’s Maisie Smith is almost DROPPED by Gorka Marquez after performing back-flip… as judges scold pro for jeopardising the routine
The last thing Maisie Smith wanted on Saturday night’s Strictly Come Dancing was an imperfect routine – having narrowly escaped elimination last week.
But unfortunately for her, pro partner Gorka Marquez nearly dropped her, after she backflipped during the salsa.
The EastEnders star, 19, improved massively on last week’s performance, but following the flip Gorka lost his grip, and she landed unsteadily.
Oops! Maisie Smith was almost DROPPED by Gorka Marquez after performing a back-flip on Saturday night’s Strictly Come Dancing
Dicey! The last thing Maisie wanted on Saturday night’s Strictly was an imperfect routine – having narrowly escaped elimination last week
All three judges pointed out the slip-up, with Craig Revel Horwood saying: ‘It was a bit unfortunate about the bad landing but I’m blaming your partner.’
Gorka held his hands up and admitted it was his fault.
Anton Du Beke deemed the dance ‘marvelous’ and ‘terrific’ regardless and the judges awarded them a trio of 9s.
This is Maisie’s highest score of the season.
Following the flip, Gorka lost his grip, and she landed unsteadily
All three judges pointed out the slip-up, with Craig Revel Horwood saying: ‘It was a bit unfortunate about the bad landing but I’m blaming your partner’
She described being in the bottom two last week, and only narrowly surviving elimination, as ‘the worst feeling on the planet!’ in the VT before her dance.
She had already admitted to feeling ‘nervous’ just hours before Saturday night’s live show.
She shared her fear with her 834,000 Instagram fans while getting ready to take to the floor and dance to Meghan Trainor’s Better When I’m Dancing.
Nervous: She had already admitted to feeling ‘nervous’ just hours before Saturday night’s live show
Posting on her Instagram stories, a silly selfie saw Maisie and her professional dance partner Gorka Marquez pulling exaggerated anxious faces as they waited on the Strictly set for the show to get underway.
Maisie donned a paisley patterned gold headband and opted for a high-coverage make-up look as she admitted she was ‘nervous’ after a week of rehearsals.
She wore her ginger tresses styled in a half-up half-down hairdo and had tightly braided sections of her length locks away from her face.
Meanwhile, Gorka flaunted his toned physique in a vibrant tropical patterned shirt, which he playfully wore unbuttoned as he pulled a silly face at the camera.
Comeback: The Eastenders actress, 19, shared her fear with her 834,000 Instagram fans while readying herself to dance the sizzling salsa to Meghan Trainor’s Better When I’m Dancing
Maisie admitted she was feeling worried about her passionate salsa ahead of the live show, penning alongside the playful snap: ‘Feeling those Saturday night nerves.’
Last week she was in the bottom two alongside Max George and Dianne Buswell.
Maisie earned a respectable 24 with her Cha Cha, but still found herself dancing to save her place in the competition, much to the shock of viewers.
But it was The Wanted star, 32, and his Australian partner, 31, who were eliminated from the series after dancing the American Smooth to It Had to Be You.
Craig and Anton voted to keep Maisie in the competition – while head judge Shirley Ballas voted for Max.
Dance-off: Her ‘nerves’ come soon after she narrowly avoided elimination last week after being in the bottom two alongside Max George and Dianne Buswell
But it was later revealed that absent judge Motsi Mabuse, who was replaced by ballroom dancer Anton as she isolated after an ‘urgent’ trip to Germany, said that if she had been in the judging seat, she would have saved Max and sent Maisie home.
The close call reportedly left the actress feeling shaken and she apparently had to be comforted by her fellow Strictly co-stars after taking the vote ‘to heart’.
A source told The Sun: ‘Poor Maisie has been so upset – she’s been crying all night and has really taken it to heart. She’s young and living away from home for the first time so it’s hard on her.’
The insider went on to say that the young actress had the support of her fellow celebrity contestants and professional dancers as they attempted to cheer her up.
They added: ‘The show’s dancers and the other celebs have been rallying around and trying to lift her spirits.’
Shocked: Maisie earned a respectable 24 with her Cha Cha, but still found herself dancing to save her place in the competition, much to the shock of viewers
Following the result, former Strictly pro Kevin Clifton claimed that Maisie was a victim of sexism after landing in the dance-off on Sunday.
Kevin, who danced with Maisie in the 2019 Children In Need special, shared his shock and his theory on why it had happened.
Taking to Twitter on Monday, he wrote: ‘People love a confident/ talented/ successful man but a confident girl gets labelled cocky.’
Maisie told fans that she usually trains eight hours a day for the weekly dance show, but added that she and Gorka sometimes have to train for up to 10 hours.
Disappointed: The close call reportedly left the actress feeling shaken and she apparently had to be comforted by her fellow Strictly co-stars after taking the vote ‘to heart’
She admitted that she is ‘slow at learning everything’ because her ‘brain just doesn’t work after about 4pm’.
The actress also said last weekend’s Cha Cha was her favourite routine – despite having to face the dreaded dance-off.
She added: ‘I guess that got me in the bottom two. But I loved it. I had the best time of my life and I loved being Barbie for a day. That was wicked.’
Since her disappointment last week, Maisie has been determined to do well this weekend and has been spotted leaving rehearsals after several gruelling hours of dance training.
Strictly Come Dancing airs its results show from 7:25PM on Sunday on BBC One.
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