Peter Andre is backing Aston Merrygold to win 'Strictly Come Dancing'.

Peter Andre

Peter Andre

The 'Mysterious Girl' singer - who came seventh in the Latin and ballroom contest in 2015 - thinks the former JLS star will do well on the show and has hit out at critics who've blasted him for his dance background, insisting the 'Beat Again' hitmaker's moves are different to what he'll be learning on the show so won't necessarily give him an advantage.

Writing in his column for new! magazine, he said: "My money's on Aston Merrygold [to win]. I hear he got some flak last week because of his dance background, but people need to take a chill pill.

"Maybe he knows how to backflip and do certain styles of dance, but that doesn't mean he's going to be amazing at ballroom.

"You can't shoot the man down before he's had a chance, plus he's a diamond guy and I can't wait to watch him."

While Peter, 44, is backing Aston to win, he'd love to see 'This Morning' presenter Ruth Langsford take the glitterball trophy.

He said: "I'll definitely be supporting Ruth Langsford, who is honestly one of the nicest women in this industry."

Aston recently insisted he doesn't have an unfair advantage on the show.

He said: "I am not a semi professional. It's ballroom. It has nothing to do with what I do."

But Aston is willing to do all it takes to lift the famous glitterball trophy at the end of the series - even if, like Peter, that means ripping his top off to flash his toned pecs.

He said: "Will I get my chest out? That's nothing new. In my JLS days there were no tops. My aim is to win. Anyone who says they just wanted to take part isn't telling the truth. Winners have the best time and get a trophy. Surely everyone wants to do this."