Faye Tozer survives another Strictly Come Dancing eviction after near perfect score

Her performance was hailed as “mesmerising” as she almost managed a maximum score in this week’s show.

Faye and her dance partner Giovanni Pernice performed to the tune of Call Me by Blondie and judges gave the pair a score of 38, just two points away from a perfect 40.

Darcey Bussell praised the pair’s “intensity” and “passion” while Shirley Ballas spoke of their “phenomenal moments” although she also had some pointers on Faye’s footwork.

Bruno Toniolo said: “Every moment, every nuance, every step was right on it.”

Faye, from West Boldon, has been performing well throughout the competition so far, featuring highly on the leaderboard in the early weeks thanks to her Cha Cha Cha, Viennese Waltz and Quickstep.

The contest is now at its halfway stage and Faye, who lives in Boldon with her family, and Giovanni as well as the other nine remaining pairs will find out if they have made it through to another week next Sunday evening.

Dr Ranj Singh has become the sixth celebrity to leave the BBC show.

The This Morning medical expert went up against soap star Charles Venn in the dance-off, but three out of the four judges voted to save Venn and his professional partner Karen Clifton.

Judge Craig Revel Horwood voted to save Dr Ranj and Janette Manrara after they had performed their Samba to George Michael’s Freedom! 90 during Sunday night’s results show.

Faye, 42, previously said she has wanted to take part in the hit show for years.

She is married to Sunderland-born businessman Michael Smith and their son, Benjamin.

l Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One on November 10 at 7pm.