Strictly Come Dancing 2017: Alexandra Burke comes back from the dance off to top the leader board in the quarter finals

Russell Grant set the giddy tone for the quarter finals, and Musicals week, making a surprise return to the Strictly Come Dancing studio dressed as Aladdin to sing the terms and conditions to the tune of ‘A Whole New World.’

It was a high-energy preview of the night to come, but it was Burke, who last week faced the dance off, who came out centre stage. With her partner Gorka Marquez she danced the Charleston to ‘Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ from Mary Poppins.

It was a dance that judge Bruno Tonioli called “practically perfect in every possible way,” and earned them 39 points to come joint-top of the leader board alongside Debbie McGee and her partner Giovanni Pernice.

McGee and Pernice danced the American Smooth to ‘Memories’ from Cats. It earned them a standing ovation from judge Shirley Ballas who said it would be “a memory etched in everybody’s heart,” while judge Craig Revel Horwood simply ‘purred’ his verdict.

It wasn’t all perfection, however. King and Pritchard had mixed reviews for their rhumba to Grease’s Hopelessly Devoted. Although the extra long embrace at the end of the dance had everyone, including host Tess Daly, questioning whether they actually kissed this time.

Finishing joint-bottom of the leader board were Gemma Atkinson and partner Aljaž Škorjanec, whose Quickstep was criticised for lacking in character. They were joined by Davood Ghadami and his partner Nadiya Bychkova. Despite being the first male celebrity this season to take on the Argentinian Tango, Ballas said his performance “was stumbling and lacked balance despite some spectacular lifts.”

The five couples that survive the public vote will make it into next week’s semi-finals.