Horwood: 'Alesha backlash is horrendous'

Craig Revel Horwood has said that he is angry about the response to Alesha Dixon on Strictly Come Dancing.

The judge, 44, claimed that his new colleague needed time to bed in on the show and described the media's response to her appointment as "horrendous".

"This backlash is horrendous and I don't think she deserves it," he told the BBC. "She deserves to be given a chance and it makes me very angry that she's not.

"If you go back and look at the first weeks of any of us, Arlene, Len, Bruno and I, on any of our early recordings none of us were perfect right away. Alesha has got to be given a chance. She's up there to form a critique and that's what she is doing."

Dixon has replaced Arlene Phillips on the Strictly panel for the seventh series.

Meanwhile, Horwood tipped cricketer Phil Tufnell and Ronnie Wood's ex-wife Jo Wood to achieve similar popularity as 2008 contestant John Sergeant.

"I think we might find the John Sergeant next week, when we've got Phil Tufnell taking to the floor. We might even find a female version in Jo Wood after seeing her in the group dance."

Sergeant pulled out of the show over fears that he he may end up winning the competition, despite being one of the weaker dancers.