SPOILER ALERT: Shock from fans as Strictly favourite is eliminated

Oct 18, 2015

We hoped he might go all the way… but this evening Daniel O'Donnell became the third celebrity to be voted off Strictly Come Dancing.

The Donegal crooner had been one of the favourites from the outset but he and his professional dance partner Kristina Rihanoff were ultimately eliminated following a tense dance-off against Kirsty Gallacher and Brendan Cole.

Our stars bid a fond farewell to the fabulous #DanielO’Donnell and @KRihanoff. Oh Danny boy, we’ll miss you! https://t.co/PAYidHoN71

— BBC Strictly (@bbcstrictly) October 18, 2015

Still, the 53-year-old was in reasonably good spirits afterwards.

Speaking to presenters Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly, he lauded Kristina's dance talents and also went on to wish the remaining contestants the best of luck in the competition.

And Kristina took to Twitter after the show had finished to publicly praise Daniel. "So glad I got an opportunity to get to know a great person," she stated.

Mr O'Donnell and Ms Rihanoff had earlier danced to Frank Sinatra's Fly Me To The Moon. A total of 13 couples now remain in the contest.