At last, Katie’s a Strictly winner
BBC Proms presenter Katie Derham finally got her hands on the Strictly Come Dancing glitter ball last night, a year after missing out in the final.
The mother-of-two and partner Brendan Cole were crowned the winners of the hit show’s Christmas Special after a dazzling Viennese waltz to White Christmas.
Six stars from series past returned to the ballroom for the festive edition of the show.
Joining Katie, 47, who lost out to boy band singer Jay McGuiness in last year’s final, was tennis mum Judy Murray, 58, Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh, 38, Olympic sprinter Colin Jackson, 50, ex-footballer Robbie Savage, 43, and Radio 2 host Jeremy Vine, 52.
Robbie and his partner Dianne Buswell scored 31 for their American smooth routine.
The same total was given to Judy Murray and Neil Jones, who danced a Charleston, and Jeremy Vine and Karen Clifton, who performed a quickstep.
Fleet-footed Colin Jackson and Welsh professional Amy Dowden scored 36 points for their rumba, a score bettered by one point by Katie and Brendan.
Kimberley Walsh and Pasha Kovalev were top with the judges, scoring 39 for their jive.
But the studio audience vote sealed Katie and Brendan’s success.
The show, presented by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, included a festive tea dance at Buckingham Palace hosted by The Duchess of Cornwall.
It culminated in judges Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Bruno Tonioli and Shirley Ballas joining the professionals on the dance floor.