Actor is ‘likely’ champ

Glasgow-born Joe has been described as having the closest profile to prevous winners of the show, based on their average scores.

So far, Joe and his dance partner Katya Jones have wowed judges over the past eight performances, scoring 242.7 overall.

According to an analysis of the previous 14 winners’ scores by the same point in the programme, the 41-year-old comes in closest, with former champions scoring an average of 248 points by week eight.

Bookies favourite Debbie McGhee has been tipped as most likely to win, with singer Alexandra Burke coming in second.

Alexandra has scored higher than any previous winner of the contest since it started in 2004.

The X-factor winner has an average score is 274.7, with the previous record of 270 being held by Kara Tointon and Artem Chigvintsev.

Fellow Scot Susan Calman has been tipped as the least likely to win, with 50/1 odds on her taking the title in the show finale next month.

The 43-year-old comedian and her dance partner Kevin Clifton have had mixed success on the dancefloor, scoring their highest marks for their quickstep performance in the show’s fourth episode.

Their lowest scores so far have been for their foxtrot, which bagged them just 18 out of 40 from the judging panel.