Debbie McGee, 58, has stormed ahead in the leaderboard, surprising viewers by making it into the top two in the first episode of Strictly Come Dancing. Although the TV personality started out with 16/1 betting odds, her chances of lifting the Glitterball trophy have been lifted considerably, as betting odds are now offering 6/1 in favour of her winning the competition, right behind Aston Merrygold and Alexandra Burke.
The TV personality, who danced the Paso Doble to Be Italian from the musical Nine with her partner, Giovanni Pernice, was awarded 30 points for her amazing performance, coming second to Aston Merrygold by just one point. The judges were quick to praise the magician's assistant on her performance, with Craig Revel Horwood saying: "You're dancing like a 20-year-old," while Bruno Toniolo added that she was "tasty, hot and spicy like an Arrabiata sauce in a pasta dish". Darcey Bussell was also full of praise telling Debbie: "You are on fire, Debbie, oh my!"
Betway's Alan Alger, said: "Astonishingly, Debbie McGee was first offered at 50/1 for this year's Strictly. That didn't last for too long as a string of bets came in and we cut her price into 16/1 before she'd even set foot on the ballroom floor. Those optimistic punters that got on at double figure odds will be grinning after watching McGee dance over the weekend. She's shot up to third spot in the betting at 6/1 after scoring 30 points for her Paso Doble and looks like becoming a fans' favourite. The British public love an underdog story and McGee's skill mixed with a growing fanbase could see her go all the way."
Debbie has stormed ahead in the leaderboard
Debbie previously trained as a ballet dancer at the Royal Ballet School before joining the Iranian National Ballet, but has admitted that she hasn't danced in over 30 years. She told The Telegraph: "It was more than 30 years ago when I last danced and I can safely say that you can't do things with an older body like you did when you were 20. Ballroom doesn't relate to the ballet that I did before in any shape or form. It's not been a struggle."
