Last updated 19:28, Thursday, 27 November 2008

YES, I know there’s a humanitarian crisis in the Congo, that the world is in recession, that people are losing their homes.

But let’s get our priorities right. John Sergeant has quit Strictly Come Dancing!

I’ve got to preface this by telling you that Strictly is probably my favourite programme on television. I won’t miss it.

Like the rest of its millions of viewers I have been watching this respected journalist, broadcaster and author try to dance, and have been amused by his attempts.

I was also charmed by his winning smile and his absolute faith that the public would save him when his own dance steps couldn’t.

And the public responded time after time after time.

I started to worry, especially on the week before he resigned, when actresss Cherie Lunghi was voted out after a dance-off with TV presenter and model Lisa Snowden.

Both had proved to be good dancers and it was sad that one of them had to be sacrificed at the altar of the John Sergeant popularity machine.

It did seem unfair, and I started to hope that John would be voted off.

But five minutes after the programme ended I was watching Stephen Fry’s TV trip through America and didn’t really care any more.

But it seems I am in the minority, and that Strictly Come Dancing is the most important thing around.

Did you see last Friday’s papers? The news of the world was shoved off the front pages by the story that John had resigned.

There were accusations of bullying by the judges, or some sort of cover up by the BBC.

The television corporation has now had to promise to return the money for anyone who called to vote for John last week.

The judges have been castigated for their attitude, too.

People have threatened to stop voting and to stop paying their TV licence. The BBC is being blamed for what’s happened.

And the comment that really got to me was from one Daily Mail reader who suggested that this was democracy Zimbabwe-style.

Please tell me how you can compare a ballroom dancing competition with the atrocities, violence, starvation and the ugly dictatorship that faces the people of Africa?

Following his unexpected departure from the show, John issued a press statement.

He said: “It was always my intention to have fun on the show and I was hoping to stay in as long as possible.

“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.

“I would like to thank Kristina and all those viewers who have been rooting for me through the series."

I don’t know that he would have won the competition; I think the British sense of fair play would have won the day and that the best dancer would surely have taken the championship.

But the John Sergeant factor has happened before. What about Kenny Logan last year? And Kate Garraway and Fiona Phillips?

And while we are talking GMTV, what about Penny Smith in the It Takes Two singing competition?

In all these cases the performances were hated by the judges but the audiences kept voting them back!

The judges have been accused of being unkind and bullying. I watch the programme and I don’t think that is particularly true.

Craig has always been the “meanie” and Len, the chairman, has been the gentle soul.

Actually, during this series Len has certainly become grumpier but I don’t think that is entirely down to John Sergeant.

But even after all this I do know that I will continue to watch Strictly Come Dancing; I know that I can be guaranteed good family entertainment with judges who, in the end, are better than the ones on the X Factor on the other side.

At least with the Strictly judges the focus is on the competitors. On X Factor they seem too busy trying to score points off each other and will vote contestants out (it seems) just to up their own score as mentors!

I’ll watch and I’ll enjoy. But hopefully I will also realise that this is ENTERTAINMENT.

It is NOT an issue of life and death. It is NOT something that politicians need to debate.

It is dancing!

Having said that, however, the best comment came from business minister Lord Mandelson, who described John Sergeant as “the people’s John Travolta”.