Bethany Antonia has become the sixth celebrity to be voted off Strictly Come Dancing after a tense dance-off.
The House Of The Dragon actress, 28, and her professional partner Nancy Xu landed in the bottom two after surviving last week’s historic three-couple dance-off.
This time the couple were up against Love Island star Cach Mercer and his pro partner Maddie Ingoldsby.
Antonia and Xu reprised their Foxtrot to Leona Lewis‘s Bleeding Love before Mercer and Ingoldsby did their Waltz to That Ain’t You by Mulaa Joans.
In a nail-biting results show, the judges were split, with Anton Du Beke voting to save Mercer and Ingoldsby, while Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse chose to keep Antonia and Xu.
It was left to head judge Shirley Ballas with her casting vote to decide. She saved Mercer, which sent Antonia and Xu packing.
Strictly 2026 results: Bethany Antonia and Nancy Xu were the sixth couple to be voted out on Sunday night after a split dance off with Love Island’s Cach Mercer
In a nail-biting results show, the judges were split, with Anton Du Beke voting to save Mercer and Ingoldsby, while Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse chose to keep Antonia and Xu
Antonia, who plays Lady Baela Targaryen in HBO fantasy series House Of The Dragon, had been paired with Xu in one of this year’s same-sex partnerships.
Fighting back tears, Antonia said: ‘I’ve had the most amazing time. It was our time, and this week to go out on this dance and to feel the magic of getting to do that kind of routine and what it means and what it stands for on the night that we go out just means everything to me.Â
‘And to get to do it with Nancy has just been a dream come true.’
Thanking Xu she added: ‘She’s just brought out a side of me that I didn’t ever think I would get to see, and I’m going to miss you so much. I’m so grateful for everything you’ve taught me.’Â
Xu replied: ‘All the hard work I know, and I saw this girl growing her strength, her confidence. She took all the criticisms on board, but showed no fear.Â
‘One thing I would love to tell you is, do not say to yourself you can’t do it because you can. You made a lot of girls proud of you watching you dance.’
The actress, who scored 30 points for her Foxtrot on Saturday night, had narrowly escaped elimination last week against Emmerdale star Lawrence Robb and his professional partner Jowita PrzystaÅ‚, as well as Jaime Winstone and Carlos Gu during Halloween Week.Â
Robb and Przystał got the boot after all four judges voted to eliminate them.
Winstone and Gu were absent from the live show after the actress suffered an abdominal muscle injury during rehearsals.Â
She was advised by doctors not to dance, and the couple were granted a bye through to the next show.
Antonia, who plays Lady Baela Targaryen in HBO fantasy series House Of The Dragon, had been paired with Xu in one of this year’s same-sex partnerships
This weekend also saw former Love Island star Dani Dyer and her professional partner Nikita Kuzmin top the leaderboard with 36 points for their American Smooth, receiving a 10 from Mabuse.
Tabby Stoecker and Mark Karmalita followed with 33 points, while Australian singer Delta Goodrem and Kai Widdrington scored 31.
The results show also marked Remembrance Sunday, with the professionals performing a poignant group routine choreographed by Lizzie Gough and set to Peter Gabriel’s arrangement of Heroes.
Inspired by the Monument to the Women of the Second World War, the performance depicted British soldiers leaving for war and paid tribute to the women whose lives were shaped by the conflict.
The remaining couples will return to the BBC ballroom on November 14 at 8pm as the competition intensifies ahead of Strictly’s much-anticipated annual trip to Blackpool’s iconic Tower Ballroom on November 21.
