“A moment he’ll never forget…”: Lewis Cope shares emotional Manchester tribute following special family milestone
Strictly stars Lewis Cope and Katya Jones in Manchester(Image: Katya Jones Instagram)
Lewis Cope was keen to show his love and support back to Manchester as he was seen performing in the city as his Strictly Come Dancing journey continues.
Fans will be aware the the actor and his professional dance partner Katya Jones are getting another moment to shine on the dance floor after their shock exit from the BBC dance competition’s 2025 series.
Despite being tipped to lift the Glitterball trophy, the pair were seen out of the competition during the quarter-final stage, following what was considered a shock dance-off against Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin.
They found themselves in the bottom two for the first time, just a couple of weeks after scoring their second perfect score of the 2025 series.
Despite finishing joint second on the leaderboard following the show’s Musicals Week special, Lewis and Katya subsequently lost out on a place in the semi-final when the judges chose to save West End star Amber and pro Nikita, who later made the final.
But, much to fans’ delight, Lewis and Katya’s partnership is continuing as he and Katya are taking part in the Strictly Come Dancing Live 2026 tour, which visited Manchester’s AO Arena this weekend.
And it was quite the weekend for Lewis as not only was he and Katya voted the arena audience’s favourite at two out of four shows, with George Clarke and Alexis Warr picking up the other two wins, Lewis’ family were there to see it all happen. Responding to a video confirming the winners, Lewis said: “Big love. Manchester you have been incredible.”
He also shared a video of one of his winning moments captured by his loved ones on TikTok. The former Emmerdale star wrote: “Manchester, I cannot thank you enough for making this happen last night. My entire family were watching, I am so grateful @Katya Jones @Strictly Come Dancing LIVE! #strictly #strictlytok.”
Katya and Lewis were seen lifting the show’s Glitterball trophy(Image: Lewis Cope TikTok)
And fans were quick to respond. One said: “Well done you two! I was there this afternoon you are both amazing loved your two dances they were simply the best! My winners that never won!” Another commented: “So proud of you always Lewis!! you deserve this so much, you and Katya dance so perfectly together, you bring so much happiness to us all.”
A third shared: “Congrats, Lewis! I can’t wait to see you live in London and send you all the best energy! You deserve those wins & more!” A fourth added: “You and Katya thoroughly deserve it! You are both absolutely phenomenal and I love watching you shine on stage together #Team10.”
Lewis’ girlfriend, Rachel Lopez, was also watching her beau proudly and shared a string of snaps from the show, and from behind-the-scenes on Instagram with a gushing message. She said: “Who knew watching you win that glitterball in front of your entire family could be so healing. I am SO SO SO SO SO proud of you @lewiscope.”
Lewis and Katya have been joined on the road by fellow series couples Vicky Pattison and Kai Widdrington, Ellie Goldstein and Vito Coppola, Harry Aikines-Aryeety and Karen Hauer and La Voix and Aljaž Škorjanec, plus, the legendary Strictly Judges Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Craig Revel Horwood, and tour host Janette Manrara.
Strictly stars Lewis Cope and Katya Jones in Manchester(Image: Katya Jones Instagram)
Lewis Cope was keen to show his love and support back to Manchester as he was seen performing in the city as his Strictly Come Dancing journey continues.
Fans will be aware the the actor and his professional dance partner Katya Jones are getting another moment to shine on the dance floor after their shock exit from the BBC dance competition’s 2025 series.
Despite being tipped to lift the Glitterball trophy, the pair were seen out of the competition during the quarter-final stage, following what was considered a shock dance-off against Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin.
They found themselves in the bottom two for the first time, just a couple of weeks after scoring their second perfect score of the 2025 series.
Despite finishing joint second on the leaderboard following the show’s Musicals Week special, Lewis and Katya subsequently lost out on a place in the semi-final when the judges chose to save West End star Amber and pro Nikita, who later made the final.
But, much to fans’ delight, Lewis and Katya’s partnership is continuing as he and Katya are taking part in the Strictly Come Dancing Live 2026 tour, which visited Manchester’s AO Arena this weekend.
And it was quite the weekend for Lewis as not only was he and Katya voted the arena audience’s favourite at two out of four shows, with George Clarke and Alexis Warr picking up the other two wins, Lewis’ family were there to see it all happen. Responding to a video confirming the winners, Lewis said: “Big love. Manchester you have been incredible.”
He also shared a video of one of his winning moments captured by his loved ones on TikTok. The former Emmerdale star wrote: “Manchester, I cannot thank you enough for making this happen last night. My entire family were watching, I am so grateful @Katya Jones @Strictly Come Dancing LIVE! #strictly #strictlytok.”
Katya and Lewis were seen lifting the show’s Glitterball trophy(Image: Lewis Cope TikTok)
And fans were quick to respond. One said: “Well done you two! I was there this afternoon you are both amazing loved your two dances they were simply the best! My winners that never won!” Another commented: “So proud of you always Lewis!! you deserve this so much, you and Katya dance so perfectly together, you bring so much happiness to us all.”
A third shared: “Congrats, Lewis! I can’t wait to see you live in London and send you all the best energy! You deserve those wins & more!” A fourth added: “You and Katya thoroughly deserve it! You are both absolutely phenomenal and I love watching you shine on stage together #Team10.”
Lewis’ girlfriend, Rachel Lopez, was also watching her beau proudly and shared a string of snaps from the show, and from behind-the-scenes on Instagram with a gushing message. She said: “Who knew watching you win that glitterball in front of your entire family could be so healing. I am SO SO SO SO SO proud of you @lewiscope.”
Lewis and Katya have been joined on the road by fellow series couples Vicky Pattison and Kai Widdrington, Ellie Goldstein and Vito Coppola, Harry Aikines-Aryeety and Karen Hauer and La Voix and Aljaž Škorjanec, plus, the legendary Strictly Judges Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Craig Revel Horwood, and tour host Janette Manrara.