Six of the Best become the Famous Five!

Former Emmerdale and Bad Girls star Claire King was voted off Strictly Come Dancing last night but left the show with her head held high. She and her 'bad boy' dancing partner Brendan Cole scored the lowest number of points in the series' eighth show, notching up just 25 points out of a possible 40.Her samba struggled to impress the judges, who had mixed reactions. While Arlene Phillips described it as a "samba from Southsea" and Craig Revel Horwood condemned her effort as "clumsy, limp and lacklustre," Bruno Tonioli said it "made me laugh" and Len Goodman said the couple had done a "blooming good job". Sadly for Claire and Brendan, however, the public thought otherwise and she was voted off the show. "I'd like to thank Brendan for at least attempting to teach me to dance," she said. [If tabloid rumours are anything to go by, dancing is not the only thing Brendan has been teaching the Bad Girls star. These reports are Strictly unconfirmed, it should be noted.][??]A relieved Carol Smillie and her dancing partner, Matthew Cutler, received the second-lowest number of votes and will be trying to get their heads off the Strictly block next week. It seems there are now three main contenders still in the running for the show's ultimate prize. Eastenders Louisa Lytton and former Spice Girl Emma Bunton scored 34 points out of 40 while it was ex-England cricketer Mark Ramprakash who took the lead, scoring 36 points for his "fantastic" Viennese waltz.

Thanks Christine, for this blog!