Strictly Come Dancing: Gillian gets the boot!

Gillian Taylforth has become the first of this year's female celebrities to be voted off Strictly Come Dancing.

The former EastEnders star - who had been the bookies' favourite to go - hung up her dancing shoes after finding herself in the bottom two with Jodie Kidd and Ian Waite.

After both couples had danced again, the judges unanimously voted to save Jodie and Ian.

The judges praised the model for taking Saturday night's comments on board and giving an improved performance on Sunday night's show.

Gillian said she had "really enjoyed" her short time on the show. "It's been great," she said.

The actress had received a mixed response from the judges when she and partner Anton du Beke performed a foxtrot on Saturday night's show.

While Len praised the actress for her "beautiful" footwork, Arlene Phillips said her dance had "a lot of the fox but as it went on, less and less of the trot".

Gillian's early departure means that her dance partner Anton du Beke has once again failed to make it to the final.

Du Beke has appeared in every series of the show, partnering the likes of opera star Lesley Garrett, TV presenter Esther Rantzen and actress Patsy Palmer - and has made a premature departure with all of them.

Bruno Tonioli said on Saturday's show, "Gillian, compared to Anton's previous partners, you're Ginger Rogers - and that is saying something."

Next week the men will return to the dancefloor, performing either a jive or a tango.