South African dancer Oti Mabuse shot to fame on Strictly Come Dancing when she joined the popular BBC show in 2015.
Since then she has won the show twice in 2019 and 2020 but recently has been signing deals with ITV and appearing to move away from the show and her sister co-star Motsi Mabuse who is a judge on Strictly Come Dancing.
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In the new series of Dancing on Ice, which started on Sunday, January 16, Oti made her debut as a judge replacing John Barrowman.
She will also be the host and matchmaker of the new ITV dating show Romeo & Duet which will be aired later this year.
On the show love-seekers will stand on a gorgeous balcony and listen to their match sing, but without being able to see them.
They will then have to decide if to go on a duet-date, where they learn a duet, and meet their mystery singer. Talking about hosting the show Oti said: “I’m so excited to be part of Romeo & Duet. It’s always been a dream of mine to host so this is a real pinch me moment, and it's a blessing for me to finally be able to share this news. I honestly can’t wait to get started!"
Oti began moving away from the Strictly dancefloor in 2021 when she became a judge on the ITV show The Masked Dancer and her recent career moves to the Dancing on Ice judging panel and as a TV host has led some to believe she may be leaving Strictly Come Dancing.
In April 2021 she told The Telegraph that she thinks the 2021 series of Strictly Come Dancing will be her last however no more announcements have been made since.
Oti is the only professional dancer to have won the show in two consecutive years, first with Emmerdale actor Kevin Fletcher in 2019 and then with comedian Bill Bailey in 2020.
In the 2021 series she was partnered with former rugby player Ugo Monye and they were voted out in week five.
The 31-year-old dancer was born in South Africa and has two sisters, well known Strictly judge Motsi Mabuse and the much lesser-known Phemelo who is a mechanical engineer.
Despite not being in the spotlight Phemlo is also a gifted dancer winning the South African Latin and Ballroom competitions in the Juvenile, Junior, and Youth categories and continues to teach dance in South Africa.
Oti revealed on the Jonathan Ross show that Phemelo is actually the best dancer of the three sisters and they often post pictures together on social media.
Oti was also a professional dancer on the German version of Strictly Come Dancing called Let's Dance from 2015 to 2016.
She is married to professional dancer Marius Lepure and they met during a dance trial in Germany where they became professional dance partners.
Together they won gold at the German National Show Dance Championships and lived together in Germany before permanently moving to the UK in 2015.
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