Will Best’s Elton John Jive Earns Third Place as Emma Willis Teases New Dad

Will Best’s first Strictly Come Dancing performance since becoming a father brought a strong result, a heartfelt exchange with partner Dianne Buswell and a pointed joke from presenter Emma Willis. His Elton John-inspired jive earned one seven and three eights, putting the pair third on the leaderboard behind Cach Mercer and Jaime Winstone.

The routine came a week after Best and his fiancée, Tobi Rose, welcomed their son, Sonny. Best has described the couple as tired new parents who feel incredibly lucky. With a newborn at home and a demanding dance to perform, the evening carried a different weight from the leaderboard position alone.

Willis made that tension the punchline. As the presenters introduced Best and Buswell, the judges produced small gifts for the baby: Shirley Ballas brought tiny dance shoes, while Craig Revel Horwood offered a “1” paddle, joking that Sonny could score his dad from home.

Then Willis held up a miniature violin. “I got Will this teeny, tiny violin, just in case I ever hear him complain about how tired he is after it was his fiancée that gave birth.” She mimed playing it and turned to the camera with a smirk as co-host Josh Widdicombe laughed. The audience reaction online was enthusiastic, with viewers praising the quip.

There was warmth behind the teasing. In a filmed segment, both Best and Buswell became emotional while discussing parenthood. Buswell knows the unusual balance first-hand: she returned to the programme after giving birth earlier this year, and competed in the previous series while pregnant. She and her boyfriend, Joe Sugg, whom she met on Strictly in 2018, welcomed their son Bowden, nicknamed Bowie, last March.

Buswell told Best that fatigue comes with the early days of parenthood, but described it as “a magical tired” born of loving a child so much. Best called her an inspiration, praising her as a mother and saying he wanted to learn from her. Buswell reassured him that he would be an amazing dad and said they could manage the experience together, alongside other parents.

Best’s answer widened the moment beyond the pair: “Big up the mums and the dads and everything in between.” It was an earnest pause in a show built around performance, and it gave the routine a personal stake. The jive was not simply a difficult number completed under pressure; it was a public return to work during an intense first week at home.

Buswell made the physical challenge clear after the performance. She said the pair had tackled the jive “with the most steps we’ve ever put in,” and praised Best for getting through it without sleep. “I’m just so proud of you for getting out there and doing a jive – of all the weeks!” she told him. Her comments put the scores in context: the performance placed third, but the effort behind it was part of the story.

Best also took a moment after the judges’ comments to address Sonny, waving towards the camera and hoping his son was enjoying the show. He then joked that the baby could see only “about three inches in front of his face.” The cast followed with a personalised blue outfit for Sonny, printed with “Tiny Dancer” as a nod to both the dance and the Elton John theme.

Sonny arrived the Sunday after Best made it through the previous week’s public decision. In a hospital clip shared with followers, Best introduced his baby as a “really cool new thing,” then showed him in his arms. Rose asked whether he was very tired. In a comment beneath the post, she joked about the competing demands of a newborn, little sleep and learning the jive.

The couple had announced the pregnancy ahead of the first live show. They became engaged in July 2024 after dating for a decade; Best proposed during a trip to Tuscany. Now the early days of parenthood have intersected with his Strictly run, giving each performance a personal dimension alongside the scores.

For now, the clearest measure from Icons Week is a third-place finish, supported by a routine Buswell described as unusually demanding. Best’s next challenge is carrying that momentum through the competition while adjusting to life with Sonny. Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.