BBC Strictly Come Dancing pro addresses 'pretty awful' time on show and quits due to his popularity

Johannes Radebe has spoken out over his "pretty awful" time on the ongoing BBC series of Strictly Come Dancing - amid rumours he'll quit the show after finding fame away from the iconic dancefloor, which airs each week on Saturday night.

Johannes and Gladiators star Montell Douglas ended up in the dreaded dance-off on Sunday after performing an emotional Waltz to Whitney Houston’s classic hit, I Will Always Love You. They were saved by the judges, who unanimously voted to keep Montell in the competition.

Taking to Instagram afterwards, Johannes - or nicknamed Jojo - admitted he was devastated to be in the bottom two, but heaped praise on his dance partner who he said had become “a beautiful friend”. “Being in the dance off is pretty awful when you suddenly realize the fun time dancing and laughing might be cut short with your new beautiful friend, who you've become obsessed with...it's a horrendous feeling,” he wrote.

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Johannes added: “Darling I hope you heard what the gorgeous @motsimabuse said to you ‘...you take it seriously, you give it love and passion and you're respectful…’” He added: “No truer words have been said. You've been consistent and it's been a joy dancing and watching you grow.

"Keep going my dear because you're on the right track." It comes as the Sun newspaper reported Johannes, who hails from South Africa, is poised to waltz off at the end of this series - as he becomes the latest pro to get too big for the show.

Johannes will perform in Kinky Boots The Musical for the first seven months of 2025. The pro dancer is said to be among the Royal Family's favourites on the programme, including Queen Camilla, who is notoriously a huge fan of the programme.

Last week, Johannes was the lead performer in a Beyonce medley as the rest of the pros were effectively his back-up dancers.