Nick Knowles admitted he thought his Strictly journey was over when he returned to the dance floor on Saturday night.
While his future in the competition was left uncertain after suffering an injury during training last week, it was confirmed on Friday that the DIY SOS star would return to perform during week four.
Taking to the floor with partner Luba Mushtuk, Nick performed his Paddington-themed Charleston from Movie Week, as production allowed him to continue his week three dance after missing last week’s show.
Dedicating the dance to his 10-year-old son Eddia, judge Motsi Mabuse praised the star for his “brave return” and confirmed that “your son will be proud”.
Speaking candidly to Claudia Winkleman after giving it his all on the dance floor, Nick admitted: “This time last week I thought I was out, so I’m over the moon.”
Nick Knowles admitted he “thought his Strictly journey was over” when he returned to the dance floor with his Charleston movie week dedicated to his son on Saturday night.
Taking to the floor with Luba Mushtuk, Nick performed his Paddington-themed Charleston from Movie Week, as the production allowed him to continue his third week dance after missing last week’s show.
Luba added: I am absolutely amazed by this man and his determination. The fact that he fell in love with dancing is the most beautiful thing.’
Doctors told Nick on Friday that he would be able to hit the dance floor on Saturday to dance again, a week after the injury forced him to withdraw from Film Week.
And as he smiled alongside his partner Luba during the show’s introduction, he seemed delighted to be back on the track.
On Twitter, Nick’s performance received a mixed reception as viewers sympathized with his injury to varying degrees.
Many were disappointed with the dance as they wrote: “Nick Knowles is back, just in time to be sent home.”
‘The judges are being very kind to Nick and giving him a lot of concessions’; ‘Why are the judges fawning over Nick Knowles so much? That was not a good dance’;
‘Hhhmmm, that actually seemed like a mediocre rendition of Nick Knowles’ Charleston to me.
“I’m a little disappointed, especially since he had two weeks to learn this routine and it just wasn’t that over the top and full of silly character at all”;
‘Yes, he’s had extra time, so he should be more polished, he was boring’;
“If Nick is indecisive with his movements because of his injury, he won’t really be able to give 100% against the best dancers, right?”
Others were more understanding of Nick’s injury, writing: ‘Nick 6 HUGE RESPECT that Nick didn’t leave the show due to injury, I know this choreography is easier than the original but I’m grateful we get to see it!’; ‘Well done Nick’;
‘NICK Charleston – He put a lot into the performance, especially at the beginning. It was too/too light and controlled (but held back and felt very stoned). The knee injury made the turn impossible, but it also meant his reflex with Luba was spot on.’
“I’m glad to see Nick back, but because of the injury, the reworked choreography resulted in a mediocre Charleston. What he could dance, he did well.
Viewers were also delighted to see Nick return to where he belongs with his fellow contestants.
Strictly fans went wild when Nick Knowles returned to the show on Saturday night after a knee injury put his dancing future in jeopardy.
The DIY SOS star, 62, is back after it was finally confirmed on Friday that she would be dancing after suffering two injuries during her time on the show.
They wrote: ‘OOH NICK IS BACK!’; ‘I LOVE NICK KNOWLES #Strictly’; “I’m so glad Nick can dance.”
Breaking his silence, Nick took to Instagram with the positive news that he will be returning on Saturday night, as he admitted he missed his absence last week and had actually caught the dancing bug.
It began: ‘Hello everyone. Well, I watched last week’s show feeling very sad that I wasn’t there. Of course I loved cheering everyone else on, but I really missed it. I missed being part of this.
“When I signed up for Strictly I never thought for a moment that I’d love to dance the way I do and I’ve really caught the dancing bug, so I’m absolutely delighted to be back tomorrow.”
Thanking his support system, he added: “I am so grateful to all the physiotherapists and the BBC medical team for helping me recover.” See you tomorrow night.
A BBC spokesperson also said: “We are all delighted that Nick Knowles and Luba Mushtuk will be dancing in this Saturday’s show. The medical and physiotherapy teams have cleared Nick to dance following his injury last week.
“Due to time lost in training this week, they will be hosting their Movies Week Charleston on Paddington 2’s Rain On The Roof.”
Twitter viewers were also delighted to see Nick return to where he belongs with his fellow contestants.
Breaking his silence, Nick took to Instagram with the positive news that he will be returning on Saturday night, as he admitted he missed his absence last week and had actually caught the dancing bug.
Meanwhile, Fleur East broke the news during It Takes Two on Friday, confirming to fans: “Nick Knowles and Luba will be dancing again on Saturday, we’ll finally get to see their Charleston.”
He returned to rehearsals on Wednesday and was preparing to perform the dance with his professional partner Luba.
Fans took to Twitter to share their joy that Nick was returning to the show, writing: ‘NICK AND LUBA WILL BE DANCING TOMORROW!!!!’;
‘#ItTakesTwo @MrNickKnowles and Luba can dance on Saturday on #Strictly. Bring on Paddington Charleston. The only thing is that it’s pretty fast. I hope the knee doesn’t hurt…’
Another joked: “Nick Knowles has been cleared to dance tomorrow (ugh!), although I suspect he might be at the dance with Paul on Sunday. See you tomorrow at 6.20.”
It comes just after Nick revealed a major health update regarding his future on Strictly on Wednesday.
He shared an update with his fans both on his Instagram account and during an appearance on It Takes Two alongside Luba.
In the Instagram video, he told fans: “I’m behind the scenes at It Takes Two and the good news today is that the physiotherapists have cleared me to train tomorrow.”
“Everything is not yet clear for Saturday. I have to see how it goes tomorrow and then a decision will be made on Friday.
‘So we’ll obviously update it as we go. But I just wanted to take this moment to thank you for all the good wishes I’ve received and the encouragement from everyone. And I’m hoping to be able to dance on Saturday.”
Then, being interviewed by Janette Manrara during BBC dance competition spin-off show It Takes Two, Nick went into detail about what happened on Friday.
He explained: “We had a great week learning the dance and we were doing the technical camera rehearsals where the cameras can see how the dance works and everything.”
‘On the last step of the dance, I was late to where I was supposed to and I jumped into position and my leg stayed still and the rest of me kept going.
‘I had a little breakdown and realized I wasn’t in a good position. “I basically hurt my knee.”
The positive thing is that he adds: “Every day is a little better.” Friday was looking pretty bad, to be honest. Saturday wasn’t so good, but I had a scan and we decided to wait until Monday to see it.
“Monday was a little stronger and today I went to see the physiotherapists and I had help from all the rehabilitators, physiotherapists and doctors and they gave me permission to try dancing tomorrow to train.
“If I train tomorrow, it may not necessarily be the end. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow and that’s all we can say for the moment.”
It also comes after the BBC axed Strictly Come Dancing: The Official Podcast.
The corporation confirmed to Ok! that the podcast, which has covered every series since 2019, would not return this year.
Hosted by Joe Sugg, who competed with his now-girlfriend Dianne Buswell on the 2018 series, and producer Kim Winston, the podcast offered fans behind-the-scenes insights, in-depth interviews and commentary on gossip from the series.
Of its cancellation, a BBC spokesperson told OK!: ‘In early 2024, we made the decision to end Strictly Come Dancing: The Official Podcast.
‘We are very proud of the last six series and grateful to Joe Sugg, Kim Winston and all the team involved who made it a success. Strictly fans can still tune in to Off The Telly, our weekly TV podcast.
The spokesperson said Off The Telly hosts Joanna Page and Natalie Cassidy will offer their opinions on the series.
On last week’s Strictly, singer Toyah Willcox and her professional partner Neil Jones became the second couple to be eliminated, after losing to Paul Merson and Karen Hauer in the dance competition.
Following the judge’s decision, Toyah spoke about the “phenomenal” Neil and declared her experience on the show “the best two months of my life!”
Both pairs performed their routines again, with Toyah and Neil taking to the floor with their Samba to Little Mermaid’s Poor Unfortunate Souls, after scoring just 15 out of 40 and landing at the bottom of Saturday’s leaderboard.
Meanwhile, Paul and Karen performed their Cha Cha for The Magnificent Seven from The Magnificent Seven, in which they initially scored 19 points.
After both couples danced, the judges delivered their verdicts and Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke chose to save Paul and Karen.
