Steps star Faye Tozer waltzes into next round of Strictly Come Dancing

Susannah Constantine tonight became the first celebrity to be sent home and accepted her exit was “the right choice”.

The fashion expert has come bottom of the leaderboard two weeks in a row with her partner Anton du Beke.

She has now been sent home after judges unanimously backed Lee Ryan and Nadiya Bychkova to stay following the dance-off.

Constantine said they had made the right decision but that her dance partner was “still king”.

There were no such problems for former Steps star Faye, who now lives in West Boldon, and hit the dance floor on Saturday night with her partner Giovanni Pernice with their Viennese Waltz to It’s a Man’s World.

The couple scored 31 and, added to last week’s judges’ score of 29, that puts them in second place on the leaderboard.

Who is Faye Tozer?

Judges Darcey Bussell told the couple: “You took my breath away.”

Craig Revel Horwood added: “That was absolutely gorgeous. This is the best dance we have seen tonight.”

Bruno Tonioli said: “Wow, for me it was the Viennese thriller of the week. What I loved was the characterisation.”

A delighted Faye, who was wearing a red evening gown, said: “I just wanted to do a really good job and to really enjoy it.”

Faye, 42, 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. An adopted Mackem,

A resigned Constantine told presenter Tess Daly: “I know it has gone a bit quick, but you know what? I just feel so lucky to have had three weeks learning to dance with Anton and to have met all these amazing people.

She added to the judges: “You’ve made the right choice, you guys, Lee and Nadiya were brilliant but Anton is still the king.”