Overview
- Will Best was confirmed as the sixth celebrity on Tuesday, July 14, via Strictly’s official social channels.
- He joins previously announced contestants Lacey Turner, Dani Dyer, Delta Goodrem, Chris Appleton and Cach Mercer in a line-up revealed unusually early this summer.
- Emma Willis, Johannes Radebe and Josh Widdicombe will present the series, with judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke returning to the panel.
- Several veteran professional dancers — including Nadiya Bychkova, Luba Mushtuk, Karen Hauer, Michelle Tsiakkas and Gorka Márquez — have left the show, leaving some returning pros without celebrity partners.
- The cast moves have generated social‑media backlash over Cach Mercer’s dance background and tabloids have reported, without BBC confirmation, that Best may continue hosting Big Brother because eviction nights reportedly do not clash with Strictly’s live shows.