A little bit of gossip has always oiled the the Strictly Come Dancing wheels. This is, after all, the sequin-spangled dancing show that gave us the Strictly curse where minor celebrities blow up their relationships by copping off with lithe professional dancing partners. But the endless drama around the 23rd season suggests the wheels might be about to come right off.
Dani Dyer, former darling of Love Island, has had to pull out after fracturing her ankle during rehearsals just one week in. It’s a huge blow considering Dyer and her partner Nikita Kuzmin were supposed to be fan favourites to win. The BBC may have another celeb waiting in the wings, of course, but it’s already had to replace DJ Kristian Nairn (best known for playing loveable lummox Hodor on Game of Thrones) after he pulled out for medical reasons last month.
There’s an unhappy spurned professional dancer in the form of Nancy Xu, who didn’t get paired up with a celebrity this year, reducing her to the group professional dancers. Xu took to Instagram (the direct-to-fan communication line favoured for unfiltered responses) to share her understandable unhappiness at the situation. “It does upset me and I do feel disappointed,” she said. “Of course I feel left out”. Ouch.
And then there’s Tom Skinner. Already a divisive choice thanks to his conservative politics and professed admiration for Donald Trump, Skinner failed to endear himself to the media after snatching up a journalist’s phone at a press junket and storming out. Quickly it became apparent that something big was coming — in the form of Amy-Lucy O'Rourke, a furious spurned mistress with the receipts to prove their torrid affair that began just weeks after his wedding.
Again, her chosen medium for dishing the dirt was Instagram, where the morbidly curious could recoil at screenshots of grotty horndog messages allegedly sent by Skinner. O'Rourke now appears to be sending screaming voicenotes to showbiz journalists, which really adds to the classiness of the whole situation. Bad news keeps on coming for Skinner, as he loses his legal case to trademark his catchphrase Bosh, under which he hoped to shill bedding and candles, to purveyor of washing machines Bosch. Mind you, I’m not sure who would want to buy branded bedsheets from a noted philanderer.
It rather spoils Strictly’s cosy image to have so much dirt and disarray exploding over social media at all hours.
It rather spoils Strictly’s cosy image to have so much dirt and disarray exploding over social media at all hours. Celebs are supposed to get papped canoodling with their dance partner during filming, not arrive with a Blue Peter-style ‘here’s one I shagged earlier’ embarrassment. And even the Strictly Curse jokes lost their appeal after comedian Seann Walsh cheated on Rebecca Humphries (on her birthday no less!) in 2018, prompting her to write a blistering memoir about the ordeal that unpacked the horrible impact of emotionally abusive relationships.
The timing of all this fresh drama couldn’t be worse. This was supposed to be the comeback season after years of dark stories about bullying, inappropriate behaviour, and allegations of drug use.
Actor Amanda Abbington stepped back from filming during the 2023 season, later alleging her dance partner Giovanni Pernice had been "unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean" during rehearsals, which he denies. A BBC report found that Pernice had not been physically aggressive but did uphold her complaints of verbal bullying and harassment, and apologised to Abbington.
The 2024 season was also dogged by scandal, originating in the form of opera singer Wynne Evans. Evans drew criticism from viewers who felt he was overly touchy with his partner Katya Jones, although he clung on for eight rounds of eliminations. But he came a cropper when he was heard making revolting sexual remarks during a press shoot for the Strictly Live UK Tour.
Evans apologised, but he was dropped from the tour and lost his GoCompare advert deal. Enough to make anyone bitter, but Jones appears to be out for payback. A legal submission by law firm Russells in March on behalf of Evans alleged two Strictly stars used cocaine during filming. The BBC responded by launching (another) investigation and the Metropolitan Police are now involved.
It’s not picking something apart so much as standing back and looking at the whole sorry situation as a whole
Suggestions that the Strictly glitterball trophy may be irreparably tarnished by this relentless pace of scandal foxtrotting through the news have been smacked down by Karen Smith, Strictly's co-creator and first executive producer. In fact, Smith appears to believe that even asking the question is beyond the purview of the BBC’s own journalists. "It would be a shame if it was picked apart to death and was allowed to die,” Smith told BBC News. "Because journalists, if you keep picking and you keep criticising, you could end up killing the show that you spend weeks and months of the year talking about.”
But loose threads in stories about public entertainment from a state broadcaster are there for journalists to pull on. And it’s not picking something apart so much as standing back and looking at the whole sorry situation as a whole.
Strictly used to be a shining star of family-friendly telly, a competition sure but one where everyone was rooting for everyone to learn their steps and do their best. It’s not a completely lost cause. This year’s cast includes the wonderful addition of La Voix, the first drag queen to compete, who is bringing proper fun and sparkle to proceedings.
But to get its groove back, Strictly can’t afford to make any more wrong moves. Some media training probably wouldn’t go amiss, given how many stories happened because contestants acted up in front of journalists. Better vetting of the male celebrity contestants and dancers and proving the support system brought in after Abbington’s whistleblowing works to keep the women safe is a must.
After all, what would Saturday nights (and the gossip columns) look like if Strictly stopped dancing?
