Krishnan Guru-Murthy struggled to hold back tears in his first televised interview since his Strictly departure alongside pro dancer Lauren Oakley.
The pair lost their spot in the competiton after three of the Strictly judges opted to keep Angela Rippon in the contest following their dance-off - Shirley Ballas said she'd have saved Guru-Murthy.
The decision sparked controversy among the Strictly fandom, with some going as far as to claim Guru-Murthy was "robbed" of his spot in the series given it was Rippon's second time in the dance-off.
Guru-Murthy was similarly upset with the result, taking to social media after his farewell with a heartfelt statement in which he admitted he was "heartbroken".
On Monday evening, Guru-Murthy and Oakley returned to screens to discuss their departure.
Guru-Murthy revealed he was "expecting" to land in the dreaded dance-off after finishing at the foot of the leaderboard following the judges' scoring of his Samba.
Krishnan Guru-Murthy was left in tears in his first interview post-dance-off
BBC
"Once we had been scored so low on the dance, I was expecting there was a strong chance we'd be dancing again so you've just got to be prepared for that," he said.
The Channel 4 newsreader added: "It sends a strong signal I think when you're so low down the leaderboard.
"You're basically telling the viewers, 'He's out of his depth'," he added with a laugh.
Despite leaving the series, Guru-Murthy did admit the fact it was a split decision from the judges made it a "much nicer way to go out".
After he and Oakley watched a montage of their highlights from the series during their interview on It Takes Two, tears began to flow.
Host Fleur East handed Guru-Murthy and Oakley a box of tissues as the pair began to wipe away their tears.
Oakley then weighed in: "I honestly couldn't have asked for a better dance partner. He was a blank canvas, you know.
"It was so nice to learn how he learnt, figure out how he learnt (and) how to get the best out of him.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
- Next James Bond: Popstar-turned-actor rockets up market as 007 bosses tipped to pull off franchise first - EXCLUSIVE
- Carol Vorderman tipped to land presenting gig on BBC rival after dramatic sacking for 'guidelines breach' - EXCLUSIVE
- Jeremy Clarkson fears further losses over ‘worrying’ habit of ‘relentless’ youngsters as he takes drastic step
Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Lauren Oakley both needed tissues
BBC
"(Choreograph) eight routines around him, we had some really good tunes in there as well - it was so fun to do that.
"We had a laugh, played guitar, we sang, we did social media videos - it was just the best time ever. It was so good."
Guru-Murthy's exit means there are just seven stars left in the competition as the remaining couples prepare for Blackpool Week this coming weekend.
Rippon, Annabel Croft, Angela Scanlon, Ellie Leach, Bobby Brazier, Nigel Harman and Layton Williams will all be hoping they have it what it takes to avoid a similar fate to Guru-Murthy.
