Strictly Come Dancing

*Strictly Come Dancing* (also known as ***Strictly***) is a British television dance contest, currently presented by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, where celebrities partner up with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom and Latin dance in front of a panel of judges. The show's title acts as a continuation of the BBC's original dance contest *Come Dancing*, with allusions to the highly successful film *Strictly Ballroom*. With its high viewing figures, Strictly Come Dancing has become a significant programme on British television, also featuring 18 stand-alone Christmas specials and 19 charity specials in addition to the main series.

The show has been broadcast on BBC One since May 2004, typically on Saturday evenings, with a Sunday results show. From Series 2 onwards, the series was broadcast in the run up to Christmas.

## Format

During the main show, the celebrities and their partners perform a live dance routine on the ballroom floor. The judges judge each performance, each scoring a mark between 1.0 and 10.0, depending on the performance, leading to an overall score out of 40. The couples' total score for each performance are tallied up on a leaderboard, which is combined with the public vote to determine the two lowest placing couples. The couple with the lowest judges score could be saved by the public to avoid being in the bottom two.

In the results show, once the scores and votes are combined to form the final leaderboard for that week's show, the two/three couples at the bottom compete in a final showdown known as the Dance Off, where they perform their routine again. Once the couples have performed their routines for the judging panel, the judges each vote on which couple deserves to stay, based only on the Dance Off performances alone. The couple with the most votes from the judges receives a place in the following week's show, while the couple with the fewest votes leaves the competition. In the event of a tie, the Head Judge makes the final decision.

*NB: The Dance Off was introduced in Series 5, used in every series to the present series, except in Series 8 and 9. It is designed for the couples in the bottom two to convince the judges they deserve to stay in the competition.*

During Series 4, an hour-long highlights show was shown on Sundays at 19:00 on BBC Two, and since series five, the results show moved to Sunday evenings, although it was filmed on Saturday and then broadcast "as live" on the Sunday.

The music for the dance routines was performed live by the Strictly Come Dancing Band, conducted by musical director David Arch. The Strictly band features singers including Tommy Blaize, Hayley Sanderson, Lance Ellington, Andrea Grant and formerly, the well-known British dance music vocalist Tara McDonald. Arch joined as musical director from Series 4 and Sanderson joined from Series 5.

Strictly was originally broadcast from a specifically designed set in TC1 at the BBC Television Center, until its closure in 2013, with the show moving to Elstree Studios' George Lucas Stage 2 for Series 11 onwards. However, during the first two series, some shows were also filmed at the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool, where the original *Come Dancing* series was filmed in the 1970s.

## Presenters & Judges

### Presenters

The competition was presented by Sir Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly from Series 1 to 11. From Series 8 to 11, Forsyth only presented the main show and was replaced for the results show by Claudia Winkleman, where Daly assumed Forsyth's role as main presenter and Winkleman assumed Daly's role as co-presenter. Winkleman joined Daly as the show co-presenter permanently from Series 12 to present, following Forsyth's departure from the show after Series 11.

**Colour Key:**

     Main Presenter
     Co-Presenter
     *It Takes Two* Presenter

#### **Guest Presenters**

 2010-13
 2013
 2014

### Judges

**Colour Key:**

     Head Judge
     Judge

#### **Guest Judges**

Notes:

* Dixon was a contestant in Series 5, where she won, before becoming a judge in Series 7
* Tonioli was absent during Series 18, he was only present via video call during the results show due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Professional Dancers

*The current list of professional dancers on Strictly to date.*

Key:

     Winner of the series
     2nd Place of the series
     3rd Place of the series
     Fourth Place finalist
     First eliminated of the series
     Withdrew or quit in the series
     Participating in current series

Notes:

* Anton du Beke remains the longest serving professional dancer, having taken part in every series up to Series 18, before moving to the judging panel temporarily (as a stand-in judge) in Series 18, and permanently since Series 19.
* Only four professionals won their first series of being a Strictly professional: Brendan Cole (Series 1), Darren Bennett (Series 2), Artem Chigvintsev (Series 8) and Aljaž Škorjanec (Series 11).
* Only four professionals won their last series of being a Strictly professional: Camilla Dallerup (Series 6), Flavia Cacace (Series 10), Aliona Vilani (Series 13) and Joanne Clifton (Series 14).
* Aliona Vilani is the only professional to be eliminated first two series in a row, with Tony Jacklin in Series 11 and Gregg Wallace in Series 12.
* Vilani & Oti Mabuse are the only professionals to have won more than one series. Mabuse is the only professional to have won two series in a row, with Kelvin Fletcher in Series 17 and Bill Bailey in Series 18.
* Kevin Clifton had the most appearances in the series final, with 5 (Series 11-14 and 16), four of which were consecutive.

## Presentation

### Dances

Dance routines performed by the couples during the main show lasted 90 seconds each, with musical accompaniment by the Strictly Come Dancing Band.

* The Waltz, Cha-Cha-Cha, Quickstep, Rumba, Tango, Jive, Foxtrot, Paso Doble and Samba were the first dance forms on the show, originating since Series 1.
* The American Smooth and Viennese Waltz were added to the dance list from Series 3, and the Salsa and Argentine Tango were added in Series 4.
* Series 7 saw the introduction of the Charleston, which became a primary dance from Series 8. The series final also featured a head-to-head Lindyhop, of which elements have been featured in Showdances.
* Series 8 featured the Swing-a-thon, where the couples danced Swing simultaneously, voted off one by one by the judges until one couple remained. It returned for Series 9 and 11. Similar versions of this were featured in the series that followed utilising other dance forms, with Waltz during Series 12; Quickstep during Series 13, Paso Doble in Series 14 and the Lindy Hop in Series 16.
* The "Couple's Choice" routine was introduced in Series 17, where the couples had the choice of three styles of dance to choose from for the routine: Contemporary, Theatre/Jazz and Street/Commercial.
* The Showdance (Freestyle) has always been performed as an extra dance during the series final. Between Series 2 and 7, it was not scored by the judges. From Series 8 onwards, the Showdance was the couples' second dance of the final.

### Strictly: It Takes Two

*Main article: Strictly: It Takes Two*
Since Series 2 of the main show, the BBC started broadcasting a sister show called *It Takes Two*, which is broadcast every weekday on BBC Two. The show is currently presented by Rylan Clark-Neal and former professional Janette Manrara, and features reviews of the performances during the previous week's Saturday show and interviews and training footage of the couples preparing for the next show. The judges were also featured at various points to discuss their opinions on the couples' progress through the competition. *It Takes Two* replaced *Strictly Come Dancing on Three*, which was hosted by Justin Lee Collins on BBC Three alongside Series 1.

## Series Overview

Note: In Series 19, Odudu and Widdrington were forced to withdraw from the series just before the final, as Odudu suffered an ankle injury during training.

### Series 1 (2004)

*Main article: Series 1*
In May 2004, *Strictly* had its first series. This was the only series in the show's history to air during the Spring/Summer, where from Series 2-present, the series was aired during the Autumn. Lasting 8 weeks, this was also the show's shortest series.

### Series 2 (2004)

*Main article: Series 2*
In Autumn 2004, the second series commenced. Alongside the main show, The BBC broadcasted a weekly spin-off show called *Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two*, presented by Claudia Winkleman, which featured highlights of the previous Saturday show's performances, interviews with the couples and training footage as they prepared for the next live show.

### Series 3 (2005)

*Main article: Series 3*
Series 3 saw a change to the professional lineup with Nicole Cutler, Paul Killick and Hazel Newberry leaving the show following the end of Series 2.

### Series 4 (2006)

*Main article: Series 4*
Much like the previous series, Series 4 saw an update to the professional lineup, with four new professionals and the return of former Strictly professional, Nicole Cutler.

### Series 5 (2007)

*Main article: Series 5*
The series was the first which had no change to the professional lineup. There was a launch show, which was a catchup and preview of the new series, a week before the start of the competition on 6th October. In a change to previous series, the results show was recorded on Saturdays and broadcast on Sundays, rather than being shown live later on Saturdays as before.

### Series 6 (2008)

*Main article: Series 6*
The sixth series was the longest to date, lasting 14 weeks. The series introduced three new professional dancers, Brian Fortuna, Hayley Holt and Kristina Rihanoff. Nicole Cutler did not return to the show.

The series began on 13th September, with a behind-the-scenes preview look at the new series, followed by the first show on September 20th.

As well as being the longest series to date, the series had the largest number of competing celebrities, with 16 competing, an increase of two from Series 5.

### Series 7 (2009)

*Main article: Series 7*
The seventh series commenced on 18th September. Series 5 Champion, Alesha Dixon, returned to the show to replace Arlene Phillips as a judge, and Darcey Bussell joined as a guest judge during Week 12-14.

### Series 8 (2010)

*Main article: Series 8*
Series 8 began with a launch show on 11th September, three weeks prior to the series officially starting on 1st October 2010. It was the first series where Forsyth did not present the Sunday results show, with Daly being joined by *It Takes Two* Presenter, Claudia Winkleman.

Three new professionals joined the Strictly professional lineup, and five of the previous lineup left at the end of the previous series.

### Series 9 (2011)

*Main article: Series 9*
Series 9 commenced like the previous series, with a launch show on 10th September 2011. The Final was broadcast from the Blackpool Tower Ballroom. As with Series 8, Forsyth and Daly returned to present, with Winkleman returning to join Daly for the Sunday results show.

Due to personal reasons, Winkleman stepped back from presenting *It Takes Two*, and was replaced by Zoe Ball.

All the judges returned, with Jennifer Grey stepping in as a guest judge for Len Goodman during Week 6, whilst Goodman was on a break, working on the American version, *Dancing With the Stars*.

Most of the professional lineup from Series 8 returned, except Jared Murillo, who was replaced by Pasha Kovalev. The celebrity lineup for the series was announced on 6th September on *The One Show*, with the couples discovering their partners during the Launch Show.

### Series 10 (2012)

*Main article: Series 10*
As with both of the last two series, the tenth series began on 15th September 2012, with a launch show to reveal the celebrity-professional partnerships, and the live shows began on 5th October.

In early 2012, Darcey Bussell, who was a guest judge during Series 7, joined the judging panel replacing Alesha Dixon.

The professional lineup was predominantly the same, except for Katya Virshilas, who left and was replaced by Karen Hauer.

### Series 11 (2013)

*Main article: Series 11*
The eleventh series commenced with a launch show on 7th September, the main series commencing on 26th.

This series was Sir Bruce Forsyth's last series as main presenter, announcing his departure from the main show during the Summer 2014.

### Series 12 (2014)

*Main article: Series 12*
Series 12 was the first series without Sir Bruce Forsyth presenting. Tess Daly took over Forsyth's duties as main presenter, with Claudia Winkleman joining permanently as co-presenter, presenting both the Saturday show and Sunday results show.

### Series 13 (2015)

*Main article: Series 13*
Series 13 saw a change to the professional lineup, where Whiddon, Lukosiute and Windsor departed the show and were replaced by Gleb Savchenko, Oti Mabuse and Giovanni Pernice.

### Series 14 (2016)

*Main article: Series 14*
The fourteenth series also saw a change to the professional lineup, with Aliona Vilani, Gleb Savchenko, Kristina Rihanoff, Ola Jordan, and Tristan MacManus leaving the show. They were replaced by AJ Pritchard, Chloe Hewitt, Gorka Marquez, Katya and Neil Jones, and Oksana Platero.

Series 14 was also Len Goodman's last series on the judging panel, as he announced his departure not long after the end of the series.