Cassandra Thorburn slammed by DWTS judge, but insists she felt ‘beautiful’

She’s making a stunning TV comeback following her high profile divorce from TV star Karl Stefanovic, but Cassandra Thorburn was forced to take some heavy criticism following her debut on Dancing With The Stars on Monday night.

The author and mum completely transformed on the dance floor in a flowing red dress with a plunging neckline and glittering detailing, looking a million dollars with dramatic make-up and her hair tied loosely back.

However, while she insisted shortly after her dance that it made her feel “beautiful, confident and happy”, notoriously mean judge Craig Revel Horwood was less than impressed – giving her a score of just one out of 10.

“Well, it was all going well until the skirt was ripped off and you started to dance,” he told the star. “Then quite frankly, it was a failure.”

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Thorburn had begun her dance by telling viewers she didn’t want to remain a “human headline after a public breakup” and she certainly didn’t let Craig’s insult get her down as she simply replied to him following the performance: “Thank you for being so kind.”

Sadly Criag’s low score meant Cassandra scored the least points, alongside cricketer Curtly Ambrose, with just 10 out of 30 each.

Cassandra wasn’t the only victim of Craig’s wrath, as Studio 10 favourite Denise Scott’s posture was likened to that of the “Hunchback of Notre Dame”. However, while Cassandra took his statements without much comment, Denise couldn’t help hitting back at his criticism.

“Craig, you try having these sized breasts and getting your leg up,” she told him.

Denise’s performance wasn’t as unpopular with the other judges, as Sharna Burgess described her as the “ultimate seductress”, while Tristan MacManus praised her eye contact with her partner on the dance floor.

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Viewers rushed to defend the stars and hit out at Craig’s harsh views, with one writing on Twitter: “Mean judge Craig needs to dial back the cruelty & the constant ‘darling’s’ . It’s a turn off. #DWTSau.”

Another added: “Great job Cass- you deserved more than a 1 from that judge – he alone has put me off the show.”

And one wrote: “Honestly if anyone was gonna talk back to Craig, we knew it was gonna be Denise #DWTSau.”

Denise, who has no past dance experience at all, recently told Starts at 60 she’s loved practicing and learning the craft — and it’s even eased her pain from her crippling arthritis.

Read more: Denise Scott: The series of heartbreaks that sent me to bed for a year

“It [the arthritis] is pretty good at the moment – the dancing is helping. There’s one ankle that there’s no help for, there’s nothing, and as I’m always yelling at people – ‘yes I have heard of turmeric! Yes I have had cherry juice!’ but the movement has been really good for it,” she said.

“I really sympathise with people who are reading this and thinking, ‘I’m in so much pain. Good for you but I can’t move’, but it has really helped.”

Luckily there haven’t been any nasty falls in training, but Denise admitted: “The worst that’s happened was when Jeremy did a spin with me, I farted. In a classic old lady kind of way, I snorted out laughing and then farted!

“It was a great bonding moment for that young man. We did both laugh until we cried! There’s only us two there, so it’s very intimate.”

Asked if she hopes to inspire others to start dancing over 60, she said: “I’d like it to be [inspiring], I don’t know – I won’t know until I get there. But it has been really good for me to do, it’s got me moving and laughing and enjoying moving. I’m thinking I should have done this a long time ago.”

What did you think of the stars’ performances? Did you have a favourite?