Strictly Come Dancing viewers are convinced Johannes Radebe is leaving the series after an emotional moment in the latest episode.
On Sunday night’s results show, the professional dancer’s celebrity partner Alex Kingston was voted off the show.
When Radebe, 38, thanked the ER and Doctor Who actor, he also appeared to say farewell to the show, stating: “Goodbye to my Strictly family.”
“Thank you because I’ve never grinned as much in my life as I have in the last couple of weeks. Thank you, Alex, for being a trooper. I appreciate the laughs. I will hold on to the memories. As far as the dancing goes, I think we’ve achieved what we wanted to achieve.
When Kingston said, “And these memories are just the beginning for us,” Radebe replied: “You can say that again.”
He then looked in the direction of his fellow professionals before seemingly bidding the show goodbye. Dancer Carlos Gu, who is partnered with Karen Carney, could be heard shouting “we love you” to Radebe.
“To my Strictly family, I’m very grateful,” he concluded before saying thank you to both Kingston and host Tess Daly.
Viewers detected that Radebe was possibly leaving the series, with one writing: “That also felt like a goodbye from Johannes too and that is a very sad thing to contemplate.”
Another wrote on X (Twitter): “Why did that sound like a final goodbye from Johannes?!?,” with an additional fan stating: “This felt like Johannes was saying goodbye to Strictly.”
The Independent has approached the BBC and Radebe for comment.
Radebe – who is nicknamed “Jojo” – joined the show in 2018 after being a professional on the South African version of the series.
He was given his first celebrity partner – Coronation Street actor Catherine Tyldesley – the following year and, since then, he’s been paired with Caroline Quentin, John Whaite, Ellie Taylor, Annabel Croft, Gladiators star Montell Douglas and Kingston.
In 2021, Radebe made history with Great British Bake Off winner Whaite as the first-ever same-sex couple on the show.
The duo quickly became a fan favourite thanks to their evident chemistry both on the dancefloor. But, in 2023, Whaite revealed he fell in love with the dancer offscreen and had to spend time apart from his fiance and partner of 15 years, Paul Atkins, as a result.
“I fell in love with [Radebe],” Whaite told The Times. “I can’t speak for him – because I’m not allowed to, legally – but it felt like there was love there.”
Radebe addressed Whaite’s revelation and was “keen” to emphasise “the platonic nature of their connection”. Whaite has since gotten back together with Atkins.
In the latest results show, Kingston, who called Radebe a “friend for life”, said she made it further in the competition than she thought she would, telling host Daly: “I had never in my wildest dreams imagined that I would last this long.”
She continued: “It’s been just the most incredible journey for me. I feel quite proud of myself because I’ve loved the process, you can tell by my smile.”
Daly and her co-host Claudia Winkleman are also leaving the show at the end of this series, with their final episode a pre-recorded Christmas special set to air on 25 December.
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