Will Young has quit Strictly Come Dancing

Will Young has decided to quit Strictly Come Dancing.

A statement from Will features on the BBC website:

“To be a part of Strictly has been a long time ambition of mine. As a performer, a viewer, and a fan of the show, to dance as a contestant was an experience I always hoped for. “I have made some great friends, and am in awe of their performances week in, week out. I have found a creative partnership with Karen that has been the most wonderful thing to experience". “I will be eternally grateful to her for her direction, talent and guiding me through three wonderful dances that I will be able to show my grandkids in years to come. “Unfortunately, I am leaving the show for personal reasons. I leave with joy in my heart that I have been able to take part in one of the most loved shows on British television. “I am so grateful to everyone who works on Strictly from the lighting designer to catering to the production team. Strictly truly is the most unique family and I thank them from the bottom of my heart". “And finally thank you to the BBC for supporting me throughout my journey. I wish my compatriots so much luck, and although I am back to being a viewer again, I’m certainly going to ‘keeeep dancing’!”

Sadly due to personal reasons @willyoung is leaving #Strictly https://t.co/YC9HzeQTpo pic.twitter.com/jco4Lf0vP5

— BBC Strictly✨ (@bbcstrictly) October 11, 2016

If you watched the show at the weekend, you'll know that Will and head judge, Len Goodman, had a frank exchange of words over Will's routine, a salsa with some Bollywood-inspired moves. Len was of the opinion that it didn't have enough traditional moves but Will disagreed, saying he thought it had plenty of salsa steps. Len then advised Will to "turn up, keep up and shut up". You can see the clip below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhO_D_pqYzU