TV

Strictly Come Dancing 2023: An Ultimate Guide

Strictly Come Dancing 2023 is here, with this year’s celebrity cohort having taken to the dancefloor with their professional dance partners for the first time this series last Saturday.

Read on for your comprehensive guide to this year’s edition of the glittering dance contest, it’s competitors, judges and professionals.

What happened last week?

Nigel Harman, together with professional partner Katya Jones, came top of the leaderboard with their paso doble, for which they scored 32 points. Nigel Harman is now 3/1 second-favourite to win the show outright.

Also performing well were Amanda Abbington (with partner Giovanni Pernice), Bobby Brazier (with partner Dianne Buswell), Layton Williams (with partner Nikita Kuzmin), Ellie Leach (with partner Vito Coppola), who each scored 29 points.

Bobby Brazier, a fan-favourite, is also favourite in the market to win the competition overall, priced at 9/4 currently. Ellie Leach is priced at 6/1, with Layton Williams 10/1 and Amanda Abbington 12/1.

Lower down on the leaderboard was Les Dennis, together with partner Nancy Xu, with just 16 points. Despite some positive comments from the judges, Les Dennis is now 3/1 to be the first eliminated contestant. Only Nikita Kanda (7/4) and Krishnan Guru-Murthy (11/4) are more fancied than Dennis to be first eliminated next weekend.

Who are this year’s contestants?

Actor Amanda Abbington, who starred in programmes such as Sherlock and Mr Selfridge, was among the first to be announced as a competitor in 2023’s edition of Strictly.

Alongside Abbingdon, journalist and broadcaster Angela Rippon CBE and Layton Williams, who is of film and theatre fame having starred in Billy Elliot and Everyone’s Talking About Jamie. Already a proven performer, Williams starts the show at 9/2 to win outright.

The next-revealed celebrities were newsreader Krishnan Guru-Murty, best known for his work on Channel 4 News, stand-up comedian Eddie Kadi and television presenter Angela Scanlon.

Documentary-maker and content creator Zara McDermott’s announcement followed, accompanied by Emmerdale actor Adam Thomas and BBC Asian Network’s radio host Nikita Kanda.

Ellie Leach, who is known from Coronation Street, was declared shortly after, alongside World and Paralympic Champion swimmer and cyclist Joe Cundy CBE and Eastenders actor and model Bobby Brazier.

Finally, Casualty actor Nigel Harman, former No.1 tennis player Annabel Croft and actor and TV personality Les Dennis came to light as the final 2023 contestants.

Go to this year’s Strictly odds

Who are the Strictly 2023 judges and hosts?

Ex-Strictly professional dancer, Anton Du Beke will return to his position on the judging panel after his successful spell in the last two years’ series. He will be joined by Craig Revel Horwood, who returns for his 21st series, Motsi Mabuse and Head Judge Shirley Ballas once again. Hosting this year’s affair are once again the duo of Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly.

Who are the Strictly 2023 professional dancers?

What would Strictly be without its host of incredibly talented professional dancers? Brought in to back up the often-hapless celebrities are a group of dancers who have made their livelihoods with their ability to move to the rhythm and express themselves with music.

Back to aid their celebrity partners and entertain the public in a way no other television show can are 19 Strictly pros:

Dianne Buswell
Nadiya Bychkova
Graziano Di Prima
Amy Dowden
Karen Hauer
Katya Jones
Neil Jones
Nikita Kuzmin
Gorka Marquez
Luba Mushtuk
Giovanni Pernice
Jowita Przystal
Johannes Radebe
Kai Widdrington
Nancy Xu
Carlos Gu
Lauren Oakley
Michelle Tsiakkas
Vito Coppola

Who are the previous winners of Strictly Come Dancing?

As is with every year, the couple that wins the grand final takes home the glitzy Disco Ball trophy and more importantly gains the plaudits of the judges, the fans at the venue and the emotionally invested public across the country. Winners of previous seasons are: