Defiant Angela Rippon and Kai Widdrington send message to Strictly fans after dance-off controversy

Strictly Come Dancing star Angela Rippon issued a defiant message after she ended up in the bottom two of the competition for two consecutive weeks.

When asked by Strictly It Takes Two presenter Fleur East if she thought “it was all over” following a slip in her routine with partner Kai Widdrington, Rippon, 79, replied: “No. I knew what I had to do.”

The couple have faced criticism after they were saved by the judges over fellow contestant Krishnan Guru-Murthy.

Widdrington told East: “We did enough, we had a high score.

“Angela works so flipping hard. I couldn’t ask for a better partner. She is so great.”