Strictly star James Jordan defends Ellie Goldstein from public criticism: 'It's not a proper dance competition'
James wants to see the couple go far!Strictly Come Dancing star James Jordan came to the defense of Ellie Goldstein after facing criticism from viewers in an exclusive interview with our sister site Entertainment Daily.
The 47-year-old former pro dancer competed on the show between 2006 and 2013, admitting he can see Ellie and her dance partner, Vito Coppola, going really far into the competition.
However, he did have initial concerns in the beginning…
James Jordan shares concerns for Strictly star Ellie Goldstein
Talking on behalf of Freebets, James told ED!: “Vito and Ellie, they are my daughter’s favourite. My daughter [Ella] is five. She absolutely loves watching them.”
Model and actress Ellie, who made Strictly history by being the first contestant with Down syndrome to compete in a full series, has been impressing the judges — Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse, Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke — and viewers week by week and has so far managed to avoid being in the dance-off.
However, James shared that he was worried for her well-being when the series started.
“I was a bit worried at the beginning thinking, ‘Oh, is it gonna be too much for her mentally?’ Because I’ve done the show myself for eight years, and I know it can be tough. It’s quite grueling and emotionally draining as well,” he explained.
“But I think Vito’s doing such a fantastic job, I love their partnership. And if they got to the final, I would not be surprised because I think they’re gonna have a lot of support,” James added.
‘It’s not a proper dance competition’
James, who appeared on Celebrity Big Brother in 2014, also defended Ellie and Vito from criticism from the public.
“For me, as a professional dancer, I don’t want to just watch good dancing. I want to watch someone who moves me. I know there are a lot of people online who go: ‘Oh, they shouldn’t be getting further in the competition because this one’s better and that one’s better.’ Yeah, maybe technically they are, but when I watch them, I really love watching them,” he said.
“It’s not a proper dance competition,” James continued before taking a swipe at the judges: “Otherwise, you’d have proper judges on the show, wouldn’t you?”
Turning back to Ellie and Vito, he added: “The only thing I worry about is that they’ve done a lot of fun dances so far. When it gets to the more serious ones, is she gonna be able to sell that as well? I don’t know. I hope so because I love them.”
