Downes crowned winner of Dancing with the Stars [audio report]

Lorraine Downes and Aaron Gilmore dancing freestyle. Picture / TVNZ

Lorraine Downes and dance partner Aaron Gilmore are the grand champions of this year's series of Dancing with the Stars.

Downes, a former Miss New Zealand and the only New Zealander to win Miss Universe, thanked viewers for helping her chosen charity, the Child Cancer Foundation.

Downes said the experience was bigger than winning her Miss Universe crown.

"I just have to say to all you people out there, all New Zealanders, thank you for voting, thank you for voting for Child Cancer.

"This is what the show was about and we're just thrilled to be able to give them a big cheque," she said.

The pair gave polished renditions of the waltz, paso doble and a freestyle dance and got the judges' nod, scoring 115 out of a possible 120 for their three dances. Their scores did not dip below nine out of 10, and included seven top marks.

They scored perfect marks for their freestyle dance, and their poise saw them head off fellow finalists Beatrice Faumuina and Brian Jones, who scored 105 from the judges.

The judges praised Faumuina and Jones for the theatrics of their first dance.

"It's not often you see a humorous tango," said Alison Leonard.

The light-hearted number saw Jones peek at Faumuina's decolletage before she swept him up into a lift.

But Lorraine Downes and Aaron Gilmore won the first round with 37 points to 32.

Downes revealed that there had been some doubt as to whether Gilmore would make the final.

"He hit the wall physically and couldn't dance," Downes said.

"You've been through so much and been doing so much that you forget to take care of yourself," Gilmore said.

Round two saw Faumuina and Jones reprise their crowd-pleasing jive for 36 points, while Downes and Gilmore danced the paso doble.

Downes recovered neatly from one of her partner's "bigger throws" and the couple was rewarded with 38 points.

For the final round, both couples danced freestyle with lightning costume changes.

Faumuina and Jones scored 37, with a 10 from Strictly Ballroom star and judge Paul Mercurio, but Downes and Gilmore's shimmying to the Stones' Satisfaction earned them 10s from all the judges.

"Queen Bea" was betting agency Centrebet's pre-season pick to win the series, while Downes and partner Aaron Gilmore began as 21-1 outsiders.

The finalist couples were joined last night by the other celebrities to dance for charity during the series: former Work and Income New Zealand boss Christine Rankin, nine-times Coast-to-Coast winner Steve Gurney, former Shortland Street actors David Wikaira-Paul and Angela Bloomfield, Act leader Rodney Hide and former swimming champion Danyon Loader.

All celebrities were dancing for a charity; Faumuina supported the Heart Foundation.

The inaugural Dancing With the Stars title was won last year by former All Black Norm Hewitt and his dance partner, Carol-Ann Hickmore. She was a judge this year.

This year, nearly 800,000 people on average watched each episode of Dancing with the Stars.

- HERALD ONLINE STAFF AND NZPA