A number of Strictly Come Dancing fans have accused show bosses of deliberately "stitching up" one of this year's pairings due to their dance choice for the third week of the competition.
The third week is the movie-themed instalment of the series with each celebrity tasked with performing a routine centred around a big-screen flick.
For instance, Angela Rippon and Kai Widdrington will perform a Quickstep to Do-Re-Mi from The Sound of Music while Amanda Abbington and Giovanni Pernice will dance the Rumba to Out of Reach from the Bridget Jones films.
However, fresh from her dance-off victory over Les Dennis, radio presenter Nikita Kanda has been given the unenviable task of taking on a fast-paced Jive.
Alongside pro partner Gorka Marquez, Kanda will be performing the Jive to Kids in America from the classic flick, Clueless.
But the decision to give Kanda a famously tricky routine to pull off hasn't sat well with a number of Strictly fans.
Gorka Marquez and Nikita Kanda narrowly avoided elimination at the expense of Les Dennis and Nancy Xu
BBC
In fact, a number of fans have claimed it's "stitched up" the couple when there are a number of other ballroom styles which may have been better for Kanda to adjust to the rigours of the contest.
The backlash came in response to Strictly's dance announcement on Instagram, alongside which it captioned: "Grab your popcorn and head to your seats, it’s time for some movie magic! Week Three’s exclusive routine reveal is here! #Strictly."
Highlighting the difficulty of Kanda and Marquez's routine, one fan said in the comments: "Nikita & Gorka couldn’t have a worse dance following a dance off for someone who isn’t naturally a good dancer."
This prompted one fan to claim: "Totally agree, think they’ve stitched up Gorka good and proper this year."
Meanwhile, another echoed: "100%, very unfortunate. We need a miracle really for them to make it to week 4. She has no dance experience and not a massive follower base. I hope I’m proven wrong."
Another concurred with the suggestion Marquez has drawn the short straw this year as they replied: "Yep, they‘re clipping his wings this year."
"It saddens me for him," another weighed into the debate. "He’s such a fabulous dancer."
And a fellow Strictly fan was in agreement: "Agreed! Sadly it’s not looking good for them surviving the weekend with this choice of dance/song in my opinion." (sic)
The BBC declined to comment when contacted by GB News about the Week Three routine choices.
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Gorka and Nikita landed in the dance-off following their Week Two routine
BBC
The uproar to the Movie Week routines comes fresh off the back of another favouritism row that has engulfed the series already.
Eagle-eyed fans pointed out that both Nigel Harman and Abbington were given unique styles of dance that none of their fellow competitors had to perform for two weeks in a row, prompting some to claim it was an effort to help them "stand out".
While Harman has been tasked with a Jive for Week Three, alongside Kanda and Adam Thomas, Abbington once more is performing a style no one else is as she and Pernice face a Rumba.
However, Abbington will have to overcome a "popped rib" injury which has left her wearing a brace if she hopes to impress the judges and viewers at home.
Fans will have to tune in to Saturday's show to find out if Kanda can live up to the fast-paced demands of the Jive as she aims to avoid elimination again.
