John Sergeant and Kristina RihanoffJohn Sergeant has sensationally quit Strictly Come Dancing.

The 64-year-old former political journalist had been a fave among the voting public...

Despite facing increasing criticism from the judges for his ungainly ballroom moves.

As the debate over whether he should still be in the show reached a new level, John withdrew from the comp.

In a statement, he said: "I am sorry to say I have decided to leave Strictly Come Dancing.

"The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far.

"It was always my intention to have fun on the show and I was hoping to stay in as long as possible."John shows off one of his infamous moves

Strictly judge Arlene Phillips, one of John's fiercest critics, had previously complained that instead of rehearsing, all John did was "sit and read the Guardian".

"I think a lot of the time he and his partner (Kristina Rihanoff) spend fooling around," she told the BBC.

"We've never had anyone this bad who has gone this far. It is a little bit disheartening when the public are voting for a non-dancing Mickey Rooney."

Commenting on John's resignation from the show, BBC controller Jay Hunt said: "We are very sad to see him go."

See more Strictly news and highlights from our TV site by clicking here.