Strictly: Former stars deliver verdict on Layton Williams' dance experience advantage

Strictly Come Dancing's Dame Arlene Phillips has said that Layton Williams does have an advantage in the competition.

The former head judge is just one of several Strictly pros to comment on the Bad Education star's professional dance background, that puts him ahead of the other celebrity contestants in the BBC competition.

Actor Williams, 29, has performed on stage in West End muscials Billy Elliot, Everybody's Talking About Jamie and even Thriller, in which he played a young Michael Jackson.

The TV star has studied street dance and ballet and has showed off his flexibility and gymnastic skills during his Strictly dance performances.

In Week 5, he and professional partner Nikita Kuzmin scored a near-perfect 39 out of 40 points for their Salsa – the highest score in the equivalent week in 13 years of the BBC dance show.

In Halloween Week, Williams wowed the judges with his standing backflip in the middle of his Tango, and came second on the leaderboard with 36 out of 40, scoring 9s from all four judges.

Williams has repeatedly appealed on social media for trolls to stop criticising him for being too good at dancing to take part in the show.

Here is what the Strictly professionals have said about his dance background.

Dame Arlene Phillips

The former head judge of Strictly for the first six series and theatre chorographer has worked with Williams as a stage dancer.

She told the Mail Online: "He's amazing, and I'm very excited, because it’s people I know.

"Anyone who’s danced is at an advantage, without question, because they know how to go forward and back, and they know right and left, and they understand their body.

"They're not starting from the beginning."

Phillips tried to justify Williams' place on the BBC dance show by saying he had never danced Latin and Ballroom before.

But she said: "I have to be honest, Layton is one of the best dancers in the UK."

James Jordan

Professional dancer James Jordan worked on Strictly for eight series between 2006 and 2013.

He said that Williams' was struggling slightly with the Ballroom frame, but admitted he is a "fully trained professional dancer".

Jordan told Hello!: "The only critique I had was when he's in frame, he was a little bit stiff in the frame, it’s a little bit wooden. It's still worth the 10. The only reason I'm being ultra, ultra picky is because he's a fully trained professional dancer."

In Week 2 Williams scored 36 out of 40 for his Quickstep to Puttin' On The Ritz, but Jordan claimed the performance was perfect.

He said: "I think there's something there where maybe they're told you can't give tens in Week two. Your guess is as good as mine. I think it was worth the ten…"

Neil Jones

Neil Jones is a professional dancer who joined the show in 2016. He was last partnered with EastEnders star Nina Wadia in 2021 and was eliminated in the first week.

He believes Williams still has a place in the competition as he can still improve his Latin and Ballroom technique every week.

Jones told OK!: "Layton is a dancer but he’s never danced Latin Ballroom, it’s different.

"He’s doing a great job and I really feel that we’re going to see the growth from him, and that’s when people are going to change their opinions. When they see him improve they will realise, because, to the naked eye, you could look at him and think he’s brilliant already, but it’s different from a professional eye."

The dancer said he feels for Williams and Kuzmin because of the backlash they are facing for being so good.

Jones said: "Nikita knows he can dance and perform but Layton needs to learn the moves and the actions, it’s very hard to do and the backlash is very hard for both Layton and Nikita. But he’s doing brilliantly."

Read more: Strictly Come Dancing

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