Strictly Come Dancing 2016: Stars accused of ‘cheating’ just days into new series

Strictly Come Dancing has been hit with fresh “fix claims” just days into the new series as celebrity contestants have been accused of “cheating” after sneaking in extra rehearsals.

This weekend saw the show’s stars – including Danny Mac, Ed Balls and Daisy Lowe – take to the BBC ballroom floor for the first time, but it has been reported that some dance couples are getting more practice than others.

Copyright [BBC]

The participating celebrities are reportedly only allowed a set amount of rehearsals, but after Friday night’s show, some contestants took to the Elstree Studios stage to practice their moves before their Saturday night debut.

This means that some contestants had a total of four rehearsals on the dance floor – one more than the six celebrities (Ore Oduba, Greg Rutherford, Laura Whitmore, Judge Rinder, Naga Munchetty, and Lesley Joseph) who joined their professional partners to showcase their routines on Friday.

A show insider told The Sun: “This year is so competitive that they’re already claiming that some are being unfair and getting an advantage.

Copyright [BBC]

“Ed was straight on the floor after the cameras stopped rolling to go through his moves before he performed his waltz on Saturday.

“Athletes talk about small gains and little advantages so they weren’t happy it was a level playing field. They’re not supposed to do it, but producers aren’t that strict.”

This news comes after fans were left unimpressed by Saturday night’s show, with some labelling the dance competition a “fix” after judge Len Goodman awarded model Daisy Lowe the highest score of the night.

Copyright [BBC]

Daisy opened the show with Aljaž Škorjanec on Saturday, receiving a nine out of 10 for their romantic waltz from Len, who later scored ex-Hollyoaks hunk Danny Mac with a seven despite a “perfect” performance.

One viewer wrote on Twitter: “Well under marked considering the marking of others! #fix"

As another added: "Don’t quite get Len’s marking #DaisyLowe 9 but #DannyMac 7 wrong way round in my book #strictly."

In light of the scandal, a BBC spokesman commented: “Any suggestion the scores are fixed is nonsense. Each judge scores each dance independently, based on its merits and in their expert opinion.”

Let’s hope there’s no more cha-cha-cheating this week!