The happiest Strictly fan of all? Rose’s boyfriend!
After 12m tune in for biggest blub-fest in dance history...
AS Rose Ayling-Ellis danced her way into the nation’s hearts on Strictly, one key figure in her life was rarely seen – her boyfriend.
Samuel Arnold had remained in the background as the EastEnders actress and her professional partner Giovanni Pernice put in the hard hours of practice each week in the studio.
Having not appeared in the weekly rehearsal clips, which often feature the celebrity’s loved ones, Mr Arnold was finally caught on camera in the audience on Saturday night, as he watched his girlfriend crowned this year’s winner.
He was seen celebrating in the crowd alongside Miss Ayling-Ellis’s mother Donna as the actress made history, becoming Strictly’s first deaf champion.
Miss Ayling-Ellis and Pernice defeated former Bake Off winner John Whaite and his professional partner Johannes Radebe, who also made history as the first all-male pairing on the show.
It is believed that Miss Ayling-Ellis had wanted to keep her romance with Mr Arnold, who is also deaf, out of the spotlight while the show was on. It is understood he has been in the studio audience several times. On Saturday, Mr Arnold, who has been with Miss Ayling-Ellis for about seven years, was seen on his feet and clapping in sign language after her second dance.
A peak audience of 12.3million – and an average of 11million – tuned in to BBC1 for the highly charged final, which saw the
‘It felt like I was out of my body’
celebrities, their professional partners, judges and even the presenters frequently struggling to keep their emotions in check.
About 14 minutes of the 110minute show – more than 10 per cent – was taking up with people crying and fighting back tears, research shows.
This included Radebe becoming emotional after dancing the rumba and comedian Judi Love, the fifth contestant to be voted out in this year’s series, drying her eyes when the dance finished. Whaite also fought back tears when talking about his experience on the show and, with Radebe, was struggling again after their show dance.
Miss Ayling-Ellis cried when she spoke about her experience on the show, while both she and Pernice broke down when talking about their last day of training and again after they performed their show dance.
Judge Anton Du Beke struggled to keep it together as he gave the couple their feedback on their show dance, while fellow judge Motsi Mabuse cried when talking to Whaite and Radebe about one of their routines.
AJ Odudu broke down when she described her heartbreak at missing out on the final, through an injury suffered in training last week, during an interview with presenter Claudia Winkleman.
Miss Ayling-Ellis’s participation and success has been described as a massive step forward for disability representation. After performing a Romeo and Juliet-inspired show dance with Pernice to The Rose, by Bette Midler, she said: ‘I’ve become more me than I’ve ever been because of Strictly.’
Of her victory, Miss Ayling-Ellis told The Guardian yesterday: ‘I was so shocked. It felt like I was out of my body for a moment. We celebrated last night. There was a bit of prosecco and dancing.
‘The first week, I was like, “Everyone’s going to be expecting a deaf person to dance really badly”. Hopefully, it will change the way people look at deaf people. Giovanni is such a good teacher, and he’s really adapted to the way I learn.’
Ratings have gone up over the series – the launch show in September was watched by an average of seven million viewers.
BBC1’s Christmas Day Strictly special features contestants including newsreader Moira Stuart and comedian Mel Giedroyc.