It was the most shocking Strictly moment of the series so far when Dianne Buswell and Dev Griffin lost their place in the competition after just four weeks. But after viewers complained that they couldn't vote for the couple and claimed the show was "fixed", former Strictly star Susanna Reid has now given her opinion on the matter…
The Good Morning Britain star, who made it to the finals with Kevin Clifton in 2013, has rubbished any hint of fixed voting and suggested that the BBC release voting figures each week to put the rumours to bed once and for all. Speaking in her column for Daily Mail, she said: "It's the same every year. This weekend, when Dev Griffin and Dianne Buswell got voted off, some viewers took to Twitter to say their phone line wouldn't accept calls. The BBC said the blockage affected everyone equally. It must be hugely frustrating for voters, but it's not proof of rigging.
Dev and Dianne lost their Strictly place in week four
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"The problem is celebs at the bottom of the leader board after the judges' scores will often get a surge of support from fans. Celebrities at the top are safe, too. It's the dangerous middle zone where fans have to do the hard lifting. Dev and Dianne were 11th - they desperately needed votes." Addressing calls for the BBC to release viewing figures, she added: "That's one way to put the 'fix' rumours to bed."
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Sunday night saw Dev and Dianne axed from the competition after losing out in a dance off to Emma Weymouth and Aljaz Skorjanec, who the judges voted to save. A short time later, fans took to Twitter to share their disappointment – and claim they were unable to get through on the phones. "@bbcstrictly your phone lines for Dev and Dianne were down yet you allow them to be voted out??? Just disgusting. I have no words," one viewer tweeted. A second wrote: "Please, please complain to @bbcstrictly if you had an issue with your phone votes for @dev_101 and dbuzz6589 last night! Seems so unfair." A third remarked: "If Dev and Di are out this week it's because of the unfair scoring and the phone line not working. Tonight's show was an absolute fail."
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