Strictly’s Craig Revel Horwood reveals ‘real reason’ he gave Fleur East his first ten of the series

STRICTLY Come Dancing star Craig Revel Horwood has revealed the real reason he gave Fleur East the first ten of the series.

On Saturday’s edition of Strictly, DJ and singer turned in the performance of the night, dancing a Couple’s Choice to a  megamix and scoring the first 40 alongside her partner Vito.

And Craig, 57, gave his first ten of the series to the star and shared exactly why.

Discussing her routine with host Claudia Winkleman, he said: “It was so good. She is a star and this shows her off and her abilities off and every minor detail was perfect.

“It’s when the music and the dance and the passion and story all come together with the lighting, the costumes, the makeup, it made it a 10. For me it was a no brainer.”

The pop star dazzled at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom with her high-octane couple’s choice routine.

And it couldn’t have been a more poignant moment for Fleur, 35, who had earlier dedicated her perform- ance to her dad Malcolm, who passed away in 2020.

In an emotional video before taking to the floor, the singer said: “If my dad was here and he knew I was performing in Blackpool he would burst with pride.

“He was my biggest fan. Everything I’m doing, I’m doing for him and to make him proud.”

Fleur — dancing with pro Vito Coppola — burst into tears when she received her leaderboard-topping score which fulfilled a prophecy she had received via a medium before Strictly began.

She previously revealed how her cousin went to see a psychic and received a message from someone on the other side, called Malcolm, whose daughter was a performer.

According to the medium, Malcolm said the daughter was “about to start an adventure”.

The medium said: “He says to tell her I’m so proud of her and give her all the luck in the world.”

Fleur described receiving the message as an “eerie but comforting” experience because she was “anxious” about not having her dad around.