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Week four of Strictly Come Dancing saw the celebrity contestants continue to excel as they delivered a series of impressive performances on Saturday night (12 October).
Love Islander Tasha Ghouri soared to the top of the leaderboard with her pro partner Aljaž Škorjanec after their Charleston recieved 39 points from the judges, with EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick and opera singer Wynne Evans following five points behind with 34.
Olympic sprinter Montell Douglas received a score of 33 for her Viennese Waltz to “Nobody Gets Me” by SZA. Meanwhile, Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell left the Strictly judges speechless with their complex salsa choreography, which scored 30 points.
“I can’t even imagine how you managed to do that so flawlessly when you can’t see,” head judge Shirley Ballas praised. “On top of that, you kept to your music, you didn’t miss a beat. I’m telling you from my heart, that is absolutely impressive.”
At the other end of the scale is TV doctor Punam Krishnan, with 20 out of 40, and DIY SOS star Nick Knowles who received just 21 points for his Charleston after returning to the competition following a serious leg injury.
“This time last week I thought I was out,” Knowles revealed after performing, while his partner Luba Mushtuk tearfully added: “Nick was determiend to dance and the fact he fell in love with dancing is one of the most beautiful things.”
Here is this week’s leaderboard in full with the individual marks from judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke:
Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec (9+10+10+10) = 39
Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas (8+9+9+8) = 34
Wynne Evans and Katya Jones (8+8+9+9) = 34
Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe (8+8+8+9) = 33
Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu (7+8+7+8) = 30
JB Gill and Amy Dowden (7+7+8+8) = 30
Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell (6+8+8+8) = 30
Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał (7+7+8+7) = 29
Sam Quek and Nikita Kuzmin (7+7+7+7)= 28
Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola (6+7+7+7) = 27
Paul Merson and Karen Hauer (4+6+6+7) = 23
Nick Knowles and Luba Mushtuk (4+6+5+6) = 21
Punam Krishan and Gorka Márquez (4+5+5+6) = 20