Arlene Phillips reveals her ideas on Pete Wicks’ Strictly journey as she admits she ‘admires’ the TOWIE star and insists anybody can win competitors as a result of ‘it is all about who the general public fall in love with’
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Arlene Phillips voiced her admiration for Pete Wicks on Sunday, as she attended the glitzy world premiere of The Devil Wears Prada: The Musical at London’s Dominion Theatre.
The choreographer, 81, was famously a judge on Strictly Come Dancing for four years, and gushed she was ‘excited’ to see the upcoming series 22 finale.
Giving her thoughts on the remaining contestants, she admitted she was a big fan of ‘fearless’ comedian Chris McCausland and ‘stunning’ Love Island star Tasha Ghouri.
And despite ending up at the bottom of the leaderboard for three week in a row, Arlene defended Pete’s efforts and praised his ability to poke fun at himself, as she referenced his infamous pink latex trousers during Blackpool Week.
Speaking to MailOnline at the star-studded musical premiere, she said: ‘I actually admire [Pete]. He is trying so hard and anyone who will wear pink trousers – so tight, bare chest, come on! That’s hilarious! And he doesn’t mind sending himself up.’
Discussing the upcoming final and who she was placing her bets on to nab the Glitterball, Arlene said: ‘I am excited. I think anyone could win.
Arlene Phillips voiced her admiration for Pete Wicks on Sunday, as she attended the glitzy world premiere of The Devil Wears Prada: The Musical at London’s Dominion Theatre
The choreographer, 81, was famously a judge on Strictly Come Dancing for four years, and admitted she was ‘excited’ to see the upcoming finale, saying she was a big fan of ‘fearless’ comedian Chris McCausland (left) and ‘stunning’ Love Island star Tasha Ghouri (right)
And despite ending up at the bottom of the leaderboard for three week in a row, Arlene defended Pete’s efforts and praised his ability to poke fun at himself, as she referenced his infamous pink latex trousers during Blackpool Week (pictured)
‘I love Chris because he’s so fearless and Tasha’s stunning. But they’re all great and anyone can win, because it’s all about who the public fall in love with.’
However, it seems Pete’s luck has run out, as Strictly fans have predicted that the reality star, 36, will be the next celebrity sent home after his performance on Saturday night’s show.
The former TOWIE star danced the Waltz with his professional parter Jowita Pryzytal, but noticeably made a misstep during the routine.
As a result, he received the lowest score from the judges, with Craig Revel Horwood awarding him just five points for a total of 26 out of 40.
Viewers took to X after the performance and predicted Pete would likely land in the bottom two, with others thinking he would likely face Montell Douglas or Chris.
They wrote: ‘Finally Pete Wicks’ week to go I think’… ‘Montell and Pete in the skate off. Pete to be booted off.’
‘Well it has to be Chris and Pete in the dance-off’… ‘I think it’s the nerves with Pete, he can’t overcome them.’
‘Gutted for Pete. You could see how disappointed he was. But didn’t merit a 5. Bit harsh.’
‘Surely Pete’s luck has run out now, the only one to make mistakes and bottom again.’
However, it seems Pete’s luck has run out, as Strictly fans have predicted that the reality star, 36, will be the next celebrity sent home after his performance on Saturday night’s show (pictured)
The former TOWIE star danced the Waltz with his professional parter Jowita Pryzytal, but noticeably made a misstep during the routine
Viewers took to X after the performance and predicted Pete would likely land in the bottom two, with others thinking he would likely face Montell Douglas or Chris
Pete left Maura a flirty comment on her Instagram page over the weekend as she endured a tough Bushtucker Trial on I’m A Celebrity.
But Pete and Jowita continued to fuel romance rumours as they were spotted looking close in London on Thursday.
Their closeness was also noticed by fans, with Jowita clinging onto Pete’s arm after they were saved by the public during last Sunday’s show.
But then Pete commented on Maura’s post of her eating trial: ‘What a woman’.
The clip was posted to Instagram by Maura’s friends and family, who are running her account while she’s Down Under.
They edited in the viral video of Maura in Love Island, where she overhears Tom Walker, who she was coupled up with at the time on the show, making a suggestive comment before they went into the hideaway.
The funny clip saw Tom quip: ‘It will be interesting to see whether she’s all mouth or not,’ followed by Maura getting stuck into the eating challenge and joking: ‘I don’t think I can swallow it. First time I’ve said that.’
Maura insisted she was still single as she prepared to make her I’m A Celebrity debut after they were pictured kissing on several occasions.
Over the weekend, Pete wrote a smitten comment under Maura Higgins’ Instagram post as she made her I’m A Celebrity arrival, sparking further speculation the two are dating
However, Pete chose not to hold back after watching a clip of her doing an eating challenge in the latest Bushtucker Trial, as he took to the comments to write: ‘WHAT A WOMAN’
Pete and Jowita’s was also noticed by fans, with Jowita clinging onto Pete’s arm after they were saved by the public on last Sunday’s show
When asked if she is in a relationship with Pete, Maura said: ‘I’m not. I’ve been on dates with many people. I mean, I date, but I’m very much single. Everyone goes on dates.’
She added: ‘It is quite scary going in later. They have all met and got to know each other.
‘It’s never easy being the newbie, but I am not a shy person, so I feel like I will be fine. It will be nice to bring some energy to the camp.
‘I am single at the moment, but honestly no-one is going to fancy me in the jungle. Trust me!’
Jowita and Maura have been competing on Strictly together since September, and in recent weeks, sources have claimed they have been secretly seeing each other away from the show and have been spotted looking cosy on car rides together.
‘The chemistry between them has been pretty clear since the moment they met but the last few weeks something has changed and they’ve started seeing each other away from the show,’ a source told The Sun.
‘They’ve tried to keep it low-key but they often travel together rather than getting separate cars to different locations.
‘And they’re so tactile backstage it has become pretty obvious something is going on. Everyone is talking about the fact they seem closer than ever.’
