Dancing With The Stars‘ Celia Pacquola and Jarryd Byrne claimed the coveted mirrorball trophies on Sunday night’s Grande Finale, but the show was rocked by an unfortunate technical error.
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Celia, Claudia Karvan, Ed Kavalee and Christian Wilkins were the final four famous faces left on the dancefloor, with comedian Celia and her partner Jarryd taking the top spot, and picking up $50,000 for Celia’s chosen charity, Safe Steps Family Violence Response Centre.
Wilkins came second, Karvan third, and Kavalee fourth.
However, fans were left fuming when judges favourite Claudia’s turn was cut short when an ad-break meant viewers missed her performance.
People in some regions complained they barely saw any of Karvan’s routine before ads cut in.
“Well here in Mildura we didn’t even see Claudia dance. They came back from break in the last move #DWTSau” one wrote on Twitter.
“Thanks @DancingOn10 – ad break instead of Claudia’s tango,” another fumed.
Another angry viewer wrote: “Did anyone else just miss the entirety of Claudia’s dance because there were ads playing?? #DWTSau“
“Thanks very much Ch 10… people at home missed the entire routine of Claudia and Aric!! Not happy #DWTSau” said another.
The show later apologised for the technical difficulty, posting Karvan’s dance in full online.
“We apologise for the technical difficulty that unfortunately saw some of our amazing fans miss this incredibly perfect performance! Here is Claudia and Aric’s routine for those who missed it!” Channel Ten wrote in a statement on Twitter.
Show hosts Amanda Keller and Grant Denyer also acknowledged that the season hadn’t gone to plan, with the coronavirus pandemic forcing some last-minute changes.
“Grant, who would have predicted this when we started two months ago,” said Keller.
“Normally for the Grand Finale, we would be packed to the rafters with screaming fans, but not tonight,” said Denyer, after audiences were banned last week and the contestants danced in an empty studio.
Last week, show favourite Christian Wilkins spoke out after finding out that his father, Richard Wilkins, has tested positive for COVID-19.
The network banned a studio audience at Sunday night’s live broadcast of Dancing With The Stars, meaning the celebrities danced only for the cameras.
However for Christian Wilkins, Coronavirus struck even closer to home.
Speaking after the show had aired, the 24-year-old said he had only just been informed of his dad’s diagnosis, and he would be self-isolating until he and his dance partner Lily Cornish were tested.
“I was not aware of my dad’s positive [test] results to Coronavirus until after the show,” he said in an Instagram story post on Sunday.
“Since finding out both Lily and myself have both been self-isolating. And we’re gonna be tested first thing in the morning.”
Christian and Lily were given the all-clear last week.