'Fun, impressive but clumsy'

Seann Walsh's tricky Strictly return

After what has surely been the strangest week of his life, Seann Walsh returned to Strictly Come Dancing tonight. But whatever his exploits off the dancefloor, he won plaudits for his moves on it.

Before the show, he and Katya Jones were favourites for elimination for their off-screen antics, with Ladbrokes quoting odds of 5/4 that they would be kicked off. They were caught kissing by The Sun on Sunday last weekend, and the story has occupied the tabloids all week.

Knowing the interest in the pair, producers kept their dance until near the end of the show – and in the end they racked up a strong 28 points for their Charleston, leaving them fifth in the leaderboard.

Dancing to Bills by Lunchmoney Lewis, they played the choreography for laughs, setting the action at Papa Seann's Pizza.

According to some reports they had been due to perform a different number, but plans were changed to make sure the pair did not share any intimate moves on the dancefloor.

Judge Bruno Tonioli thought it was ‘manic in a good way’, criticising their ‘gangly finishing’ but adding: ‘You went for it!’

Darcey Bussell parsed the energy of the routine, saying it was ‘fun, impressive but clumsy and needed precision’

Shirley Ballas gave them credit for a lift, and the entertainment value of the dance, and even notoriously tough Craig Revel Horwood conceded they did well.

After hearing the verdicts, Katya says ‘it’s been an amazing week’ – which is quite the understatement.

Walsh’s ex-girlfriend, Rebeccas Humphries, has emerged best from the kissing affair after winning praise for her message about the incident.

However, the ‘snog scandal’ might also work in the pair’s favour. TalkSport presenter Julia Hartley-Brewer tweeted before tonight’s show: ‘If @seannwalsh was my fella, I’d kick him out. But, as a @bbcstrictly fan, tonight I will be voting FOR him & Katya to stay on the show because I’m fed up with the new puritanism, the witch hunts & the daily Two Minutes of Hate. It’s just a dance competition. Get over it.’

Red Dwarf’s Danny John Jules and his dancing partner Amy Dowden scored 27 points from judges for their Viennese Waltz to I’ve Gotta Be Me by Sammy Davis Jr, capturing the golden age of Las Vegas.

The Strictly Come Dancing results show is at 7.45pm tomorrow.