There wasn't a dry eye in the Strictly Come Dancing studio after Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice performed a very special routine.
The EastEnders star and her Strictly partner Giovanni Pernice delivered a first for the show on Saturday evening (November 13) and it was hailed as Strictly's greatest ever performance.
To pay respect and raise awareness for members of the deaf community, the music was cut and the pair continued to dance in silence as part of their spellbinding routine to the Clean Bandit featuring Zara Larsson song Symphony.
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When the dance ended the pair shared an emotional hug.
And a tearful Giovanni told his celeb dance partner, who is the first deaf contestant to be taking part in the hit BBC One show : "I love you."
The studio audience and judges were visibly moved by their dance as they stood and deaf-signed applause by waving their arms in the air.
"This was so special," said judge Motsi Mabuse as she thanked Rose for allowing the audience to be 'included in your world.'
Head judge Shirley Ballas said about the moment: "It will be etched in my heart for a long, long time."
And Anton du Beke, who has been with the hit show since it began in 2004 and this year as a judge, said: "It was the greatest thing I've ever seen on the show."
Rose, from Manchester, previously said she was hoping to 'break sterotypes' on Strictly.
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She said after she was announced for the show: "To be the first deaf contestant on Strictly Come Dancing is sooooo exciting.. and a little bit scary.
"It is the hardest secret I have ever had to keep so it feels amazing to finally have this out in the open! I hope I will do the deaf community proud and break down more barriers."
The star uses a hearing aid, so can pick up some of the music and can hear the beat as well as feel the vibrations from the live band led by Dave Arch through the dancefloor at the show's Elstree studios.
Rose also focuses on reading her partner's body language plus counting in her head to help with timing.
Rose, from Manchester, is best known to viewers for playing Frankie Lewis in EastEnders.
The 31-year-old, who uses British Sign Language (BSL), joined the BBC soap in 2020 as the secret daughter of Mick Carter, played by Danny Dyer.
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