Strictly's Rose celebrates history-making week in most humble way as Giovanni heaps praise
She may be a Strictly Come Dancing history-maker but Rose Ayling-Ellis isn't letting it go to her head.
The EastEnders actress and her professional partner Giovanni Pernice performed a terrifying tango to Ed Sheeran's latest hit Shivers during the BBC One competition's Halloween special.
Italian dancer Giovanni went into this week with a bit of pressure on his shoulders having been dubbed the “king of Halloween” on the show.
That's because he has topped the leaderboard of the spooky themed episode every year since he joined Strictly in 2015.
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And luckily, Saturday night was no exception.
He and Rose topped the leaderboard during week six and not only that, they did it with a perfect score of 40 - the earliest the top mark has ever been achieved in the competition.
The judges flooded the dancing couple with praise.
Commenting on the dance, judge Anton Du Beke said: “I've written a few things down here and they all basically say perfect, congratulations."
Motsi Mabuse added: "Rose, I've been judging for 14 years, I’ve seen a couple of numbers, but this one will remain epic.
"This was absolutely one amazing dance. From the beginning your acting skills, the way you dance together, the technique in the dance, I mean this was out of this world."
Singer Ed also surprised the couple with a video message which was played to the pair after they completed their dance.
He said: "Hey Rose, Ed Sheeran here. Thank-you so much for dancing to my track Shivers with Giovanni. I hope you have a wonderful rest of the season, I hope you win and I’m really honoured that you’re dancing to it. Have a great day, lots of love."
Afterwards, Giovanni was reduced to tears as the scores were delivered.
But once the cameras stopped rolling Rose, who was dressed as an ice queen, headed backstage to celebrate in the most humble way.
The actress, 26, tucked into a pizza. while still in her costume, writing: "Celebrating in style..."
Giovanni also heaped praise on his partner, taking to Instagram with a sweet tribute.
Alongside a video from the BBC show showing their live reaction to the judges scores, the 31-year-old wrote: "One of the most rewarding moment of my [career]... and is all down to you @rose.a.e ! Your are an inspiration.. a super star! I know I can be a lizard sometimes ( most of the times ) but I am very proud of us !!" he wrote.
"Not matter what the scores are we both know how much we work in the studio every day to achieve those performances !! Hard work always pays off !!! grateful, honoured and privileged to be your strictly partner!"
Soap star Rose, who has played Frankie Lewis since 2020, had already made Strictly history before Saturday night by becoming the show’s first-ever deaf contestant.
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