Strictly's Vito Coppola emotional over intense Celebrity MasterChef challenge
The dancer was in tears but said that they were happy ones
What did you miss?
Strictly Come Dancing pro Vito Coppola was in tears after tackling a tough Celebrity MasterChef challenge.
The dancer is one of the celebs taking part in the latest series of the BBC show, and Thursday's instalment (5 September) saw him trying to cook his way into the next round. He and fellow contestant OJ Borg were sent off to a Thai restaurant to show judges John Torode and Gregg Wallace what they could do in a professional, fast-paced kitchen.
Emotions were riding high as they tried to provide a slick service, and it all proved to be overwhelming for Coppola, who ended up crying.
What, how and why?
Coppola and Borg - who were up against Mutya Buena and Dominic Skinner - were sent to Supawan in London to showcase their cooking skills.
The dancer looked tense as he was told that he had to prepare a starter of chicken wings stuffed with Thai-spiced prawn and chicken mousse, but said he was "very, very focused" on the task in hand. "So I will channel all my energy, you know, and I want to really do my best, I promise," he said.
"I have never done any of this before," he added, as he was faced with de-boning a pile of chicken wings.
Coppola kept his cool as people started to flock into the restaurant, juggling dishes as he said he thought he was doing well. But as the intense service came to an end he was overcome with emotion.
"I found this amazing," he exclaimed as he wiped tears from his eyes. "I just love it when people do things with love. Sorry, it is happiness tears, yes, so good, thank you!"
"You are amazing!" the TV star said to other staff in the kitchen, adding: "This is an experience guys! Wow!"
Viewers were charmed by Coppola, with many posting sweet messages about the Italian dancer on social media. "Vito is so full of energy and so positive lol gotta love him!" one person wrote on X. "Isn’t @Vito__Coppola just fabulous, that man can cook," said someone else.
Another fan quipped: "Vito needs to be protected at all costs... he also needs to read the phone book out to me in that accent."
Who was sent home from Celebrity MasterChef?
In the end, it was radio and TV presenter Borg, who had been working with Coppola in the kitchen, who was sent home and missed out on a place in the quarter-finals.
He admitted that he knew it was coming, saying "Thought so" as the judges announced his time in the kitchen was over. Summarising his MasterChef experience, he said it was: "Cook, cook, cook, cry, cry, cry, goodbye."
"I have loved every single moment," he added. "But it is tinged with sadness, and I am sad my journey has ended here."
