Strictly Come Dancing has announced the professional line-up for the 2022 series. It comes after both Aljaž Škorjanec and Oti Mabuse quit the popular BBC One show.
Welsh professional dancer Amy Dowden is returning, as is Dianne Buswell, Nadiya Bychkova, Graziano Di Prima, Karen Hauer and Katya Jones. Neil Jones, Gorka Marquez, Luba Mushtuk, Giovanni Pernice, Johannes Radebe and Nancy Xu are also back.
Kai Widdrington, who was partnered with AJ Odudu, and Nikita Kuzmin, who danced with Tilly Ramsay, will also return to the competition after joining in 2021. While Cameron Lombard and Jowita Przystal, who joined the show last year but weren't partnered with a celebrity, are also in the line-up.
Read more: Aljaž Škorjanec quits Strictly Come Dancing after nine years with heartfelt statement
It comes after Aljaž recently announced he was quitting the show after nine years. Aljaž joined Strictly Come Dancing in 2013 and during his first year he lifted the Glitterball Trophy with Abbey Clancy. Other partnerships have included Alison Hammond, Helen George, Gemma Atkinson and Clara Amfo.
In a heartfelt statement on social media on March 28, Aljaž thanked his dance partners and viewers at home and special shout out to wife Janette Manrara, who left the show in 2021. You can read the statement in full here.
Meanwhile, Oti Mabuse announced she was leaving the show in February after seven years. The Dancing On Ice and The Masked Dancer judge won Strictly with soap star Kelvin Fletcher in 2019 and comedian Bill Bailey in 2020.
A statement posted to the Strictly Twitter account at the time read: "Her energy, creativity and talent have contributed to so many of the show's most memorable moments and she will be hugely missed, not only by viewers, but the entire team. She leaves a dazzling legacy behind her, as the only professional dance to life the Glitterball Trophy in two consecutive years.
"We couldn't be prouder of Oti and what she has achieved. She will always be at the very heart of our Strictly family and we wish her every success in her already bright future."
Strictly 2022 professionals line-up
Dianne Buswell
Nadiya Bychkova
Graziano Di Prima
Amy Dowden
Karen Hauer
Katya Jones
Neil Jones
Nikita Kuzmin
Cameron Lombard
Gorka Marquez
Luba Mushtuk
Giovanni Pernice
Jowita Przystal
Johannes Radebe
Kai Widdrington
Nancy Xu
Executive Producer, Sarah James, said: "We could not be more proud of the Strictly professional dancers and we are so happy to have so many returning for 2022. The world-class skill and extraordinary care they bring to everything they do, from working with their celebrity partners to choreographing and performing remarkable and unforgettable routines, never ceases to amaze us. They really are the best in the business and we can’t wait to see what they bring to the Strictly ballroom for our twentieth fabulous series." For more showbiz and television stories, get our newsletter here.
