Shayne Ward might already have been ‘saved’ on Strictly Come Dancing

Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu might have been handed a much-needed lifeline on Strictly Come Dancing.

The pair have endured a tough time on the BBC series, landing in the bottom two on two separate occasions.

However, their luck could change as they’ve been assigned the Quickstep, a style of dance beloved for its ability to get stars through the week with ease.

An analysis of the 2,300+ dance numbers that have been performed over nearly 20 years, 22 seasons, and nearly 500 episodes, found that the Ballroom dance has the best track record.

The chasses, lock steps, and pivot turns are a hit with judges and viewers alike, leading to 157 Quicksteppers going on to dance another week.

Research by MyBettingSites.co.uk found the Paso Doble was the second safest style of dance with 132 routines leading to progression to the next round, while the Tango was just behind at 131.

The Tango can be a divisive number as it’s in third place for ending Strictly journies and equals the Cha-cha-cha’s 23.

The dance that can lead to the most danger is the Samba, which is responsible for 33 eliminations.

Shayne, 40, and Nancy, 33, will be dancing their Quickstep to Help! by The Beatles as part of Strictly’s first-ever Icons Week, which will require each couple to honour a musical icon with a routine set to their song.

Their upbeat dance comes after they were in the most recent dance-off, and faced Dr Punam Krishanand Gorka Márquez in Halloween week.

The judges – Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke – unanimously voted to save Shayne and Nancy.

After the results show, Shayne admitted that finding himself in the position left him feeling ‘gutted’.

‘This week has been a hard one,’ he said.

In week four, Shayne was up against Nick Knowles and Luba Mushtuk in the dance-off but managed to survive the tough episode.

Having to fight for his spot came as a shock as he’d been safely in the middle of the leaderboard. Metro’s TV Editor Adam Miller hypothesised that it could be that the public hasn’t gotten to know Shayne, and assumed he’s arrogant.

‘Part of the reason the public isn’t engaging with Shayne is because they’re struggling to see the real him. But is that cockiness?

‘If anything, to me, he looks nervous and a little overwhelmed no doubt triggered by exaggerated and unwarranted backlash to one of the first comments he made on the show.’ During the launch episode, Shayne let his competitive side be known and declared he was ‘in it to win it’.

The luck of the Quickstep could save them this time with not one of the 2024 celebrities landing in the bottom two with it. Paul Merson and Karen Hauer were even shocked by its power when they survived against the odds, before leaving the following week.

This week will also include JB Gill’s Couple’s Choice to a Bruno Mars Medley, dancing with Lauren Oakley, who is standing in for Amy Dowden.

Amy was taken to hospital after feeling ‘unwell’ following Saturday’s live show.

The Welsh fan-favourite, who has Crohn’s Disease and was previously diagnosed with breast cancer before getting the all-clear in February, is now taking time to recover.

Lauren was previously not given a partner, with some fans fuming that she’s too often overlooked.