Sergeant: why I quit Strictly

The former BBC chief political correspondent had been heavily criticised by the panel of judges, finishing at the bottom of the score board for the last three weeks.

However, he and his partner, Kristina Rihanoff, have received strong public support from the public to avoid the dance-off.



Sergeant said today: "It was going to be a bloody battle and I was not prepared to inflict casualties.

"The problem was there was no viable 'stop Sergeant' candidate.

"I'm doing my best but you can't force me to dance against my will!

"The time to leave the party is before the fight starts, and I think that is what has happened on this occasion."

Sergeant has reportedly been receiving 40 per cent of votes from the public, and a string of Facebook groups have been set up to support him.



But his success has riled the judges. Early this week, judge Arlene Phillips claimed that instead of rehearsing, Sergeant "sits and reads the Guardian".

Some bookmakers lowered the odds of Sergeant winning the dance contest from 66-1 to 16-1 at the start of the week.

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