Shaun Wright-Phillips has left Strictly Come Dancing, the fourth celebrity to go in the 2026 series. He and his professional partner, Alexis Warr, lost Sunday night's dance-off to actor Jaime Winstone and Carlos Gu, on a results show that also changed the rules for Halloween week.
The former England winger reprised his jive to "Faith", by Stevie Wonder featuring Ariana Grande. Winstone and Gu danced their foxtrot to Olivia Dean's "Man I Need" again. Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse voted to save Winstone and Gu. Head judge Shirley Ballas voted to keep Wright-Phillips and Warr. The casting vote fell to Anton Du Beke, who saved Winstone and Gu.
A bottom two that the judges' marks did not predict
Winstone and Gu had scored 25 on Saturday and still finished in the bottom two once the public vote was added. Wright-Phillips and Warr found themselves there despite placing above Love Island's Cach Mercer and Maddie Ingoldsby, who scored 24, and above Emmerdale's Lawrence Robb and Jowita Przystal, who scored 19. Revel Horwood had called Robb "flat-footed and out of time". The public, not the paddles, decided who danced again.
Wright-Phillips is the latest sports name to find that a professional career does not translate into a Strictly one. Dame Sarah Storey, the Paralympic great, was the third celebrity to leave, in the Icons Week dance-off. The series is now past the point where novelty is enough. The couples still in it are the ones who can survive a bad Saturday and a thin public vote.
The first 10s, and a leaderboard of 37
Saturday also brought the first 10 of the series. Delta Goodrem, back after a rib injury with Kai Widdrington, danced a rumba to Celine Dion's "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" and scored 34. Winter Olympic champion Tabby Stoecker went higher. With Mark Karmalita she scored 37 for a couple's choice to Olivia Rodrigo's "Stupid Song", two 10s among the marks, the highest total of the series so far. The routine was dedicated to her late father. Ballas called her a "beautiful dancer" and the performance "absolutely exquisite".
The results show added a group number: Melanie C, of the Spice Girls, joined the professional dancers for a fitness routine. It was a reminder of the series' habit of borrowing pop history when the competition itself is getting narrower.
Strictly 2026: Where the Series Stands
- Shaun Wright-Phillips and Alexis Warr are the fourth couple to leave.
- Jaime Winstone and Carlos Gu survived the dance-off after scoring 25.
- Tabby Stoecker leads the series with 37. Delta Goodrem scored 34 on her return.
- Halloween week, Saturday 31 October at 6.30pm on BBC One, will use a triple dance-off.
- The show then returns to a two-couple dance-off for the rest of the series.
Three couples, one exit
The format change is the part that will matter next week. On the Halloween special, the three couples with the lowest combined judges' scores and public votes will dance again, and the judges will eliminate one pair. It is the first triple dance-off in the show's history. After that, Strictly goes back to two couples. The producers have given themselves one night in which a shock is easier to arrange, and then restored the ritual viewers know.
All episodes so far are on BBC iPlayer. If you missed Goodrem's route back from injury, that is the piece to read before Saturday. For the exit that cleared the path to this one, Dame Sarah Storey's dance-off is here.