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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Verity Sulway

Strictly fans divided over 'irritating' change to show - but others are delighted

Strictly Come Dancing viewers have been left divided over a big change to the show in the last two weeks after lockdown was partially lifted in some areas of the country.

The show had made several changes to make sure it was able to go ahead this year at all, with contestants and their professional partners bubbling together, and regular Covid testing.

And for several weeks, the show banned the live audience and the dancers had to perform to an empty studio, when lockdown measures cracked down again.

But the audience has since returned, and was made up of the contestant's family and friends, plus NHS workers who were gifted tickets to say thank you for their hard work.

Hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman introduced the audience on Saturday night, as Tess said: "We are delighted to welcome back our socially distanced studio audience of household bubbles and wonderful NHS workers."

But viewers were warring over whether or not the audience have been missed, as they are known for clapping out of time and some of them can be rowdy.

One viewer tweeted: "I think I preferred it without the audience and all their unnecessary screaming and shouting during the performance #Strictly ".

Another agreed: "5 minutes in and I'm fed up of the audience already".

Other added: "I definitely haven't missed the screaming audience #Strictly " and "I have not missed the noise from the audience #strictly ".

But others were delighted to hear the audience return, as one wrote: "So nice to see an audience albeit small and socially distant in the #Strictly studio. Hopefully next year the place will be packed & full of life again."

"It's lovely to see and hear some audience members back on", penned another.

* Strictly Come Dancing airs tonight at 7:30pm at BBC One

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