Strictly 2025

[lolly]

I'm here for Ross King purely to observe the hair and make-up to keep him looking for fresh and young.

I'll have to try that. Like convincing myself that Scott Mills winning CRATW wasn't a bad thing because watching his new face was entertaining.

 

[Shoat]

Apparantly William Hill are offering 7/2 on "BOSH" being uttered at least three times on the launch show.

And if there is one single way to turn the dreadful Thomas Skinner into a positive, it's an easy payday

 

[Rita]

I used to love Strictly, but didn’t really get in to it last year at all. It is a programme that if I am in on a Saturday evening I will watch live, but never seek it out if I miss the Saturday episode. I love the sparkle, the glitz and glamour BUT that line up is awful. It seems to get worse and worse every year. Do the celebs get paid handsomely for this like they do other reality shows? It possibly doesn’t lift one’s profile like it once did?

 

[jyxz]

Apparantly William Hill are offering 7/2 on "BOSH" being uttered at least three times on the launch show.

And if there is one single way to turn the dreadful Thomas Skinner into a positive, it's an easy payday

By Claudia though?

 

[Shoat]

By Claudia though?

No but you can get 2/1 on her LIVE QUITTING when it happens

Do the celebs get paid handsomely for this like they do other reality shows? It possibly doesn’t lift one’s profile like it once did?

I'd assume there's more money with a commercial broadcaster like ITV. The career benefit probably depends on the person's field - little value to established TV actors like Alex Kingston or Stefan Dennis who are hardly being exposed to new audiences. But it must open some new doors for a George Clarke, who seems to have been exclusively internet-only up to now.

 

[FetchFugly]

No but you can get 2/1 on her LIVE QUITTING when it happens



I'd assume there's more money with a commercial broadcaster like ITV. The career benefit probably depends on the person's field - little value to established TV actors like Alex Kingston or Stefan Dennis who are hardly being exposed to new audiences. But it must open some new doors for a George Clarke, who seems to have been exclusively internet-only up to now.

The pay on the likes of I'm a Celebrity is much more and the Strictly structure is that all celebs are paid equally, though depending on how far they get in the competition.

 

[Finn]

Most of the bigger Strictly names in recent years weren't really names until they did Strictly, so we shouldn't be surprised it's not A-listers agogo. This year's feels stronger than last year's did at this point, with the Go Compare Man, a GP off Morning Live, and two X Factor people

I'm most excited for La Voix, River Song, Chris Robshaw, and Ellie Goldstein. I have a cousin with Down syndrome who loves Strictly, and she is fucking buzzing <3

 

[Finn]

I do like Vicky, but cannot abide podcasts that are just the equivalent of people purposefully talking too loud in a public space.

This is such a great way of summing up a whole podcast genre

 

[Rita]

Most of the bigger Strictly names in recent years weren't really names until they did Strictly, so we shouldn't be surprised it's not A-listers agogo. This year's feels stronger than last year's did at this point, with the Go Compare Man, a GP off Morning Live, and two X Factor people

I'm most excited for La Voix, River Song, Chris Robshaw, and Ellie Goldstein. I have a cousin with Down syndrome who loves Strictly, and she is fucking buzzing <3

I can’t think of any Strictly names in recent years who got a career lift after Strictly? I don’t think this years line up is strong at all and the last few years have also been incredibly weak.

They try to be sort of reaching out to a younger audience by bringing out Love Island stars and influencers and it is really rather pointless as they don’t generally watch the show.

 

[lolly]

They dont watch in any great number, but I think the idea is that it'll give the show a little more social media traction. Although it's going to have a lot of that this year, and it won't be pleasant.

Plus it remains the BBC's flagship family show, so it would feel wrong not to acknowledge that section of the audience.

 

[FetchFugly]

I can’t think of any Strictly names in recent years who got a career lift after Strictly? I don’t think this years line up is strong at all and the last few years have also been incredibly weak.

They try to be sort of reaching out to a younger audience by bringing out Love Island stars and influencers and it is really rather pointless as they don’t generally watch the show.

Rose Ayling-Ellis did very nicely out of Strictly, and from the same series AJ as well, to a lesser extent. I imagine Fleur is quite pleased with her tv presenting gig too. I think a good run on Strictly probably can result in being considered for more work, especially for younger, upcoming presenter/personality types. I don't imagine it doing much for the likes of Alex Kingston.

 

[FetchFugly]

They dont watch in any great number, but I think the idea is that it'll give the show a little more social media traction. Although it's going to have a lot of that this year, and it won't be pleasant.

Plus it remains the BBC's flagship family show, so it would feel wrong not to acknowledge that section of the audience.

I've been thinking about why my reaction to this line up was that it is a bit 'low rent' and I guess it is that the ongoing move towards reality and new media contestants seems to have been doubled down on this year. There's not really a mainstream tv presenter or pop star (sorry Stefan) like you normally get, though to be fair there must be only so many daytime tv types who are interested, and they have pretty much wrung 90s/00s boy/girlband pop dry.

Saying all this, basically if Skinner were Natalie Imbruglia I would be much happier.

 

[Rita]

Rose Ayling-Ellis did very nicely out of Strictly, and from the same series AJ as well, to a lesser extent. I imagine Fleur is quite pleased with her tv presenting gig too. I think a good run on Strictly probably can result in being considered for more work, especially for younger, upcoming presenter/personality types. I don't imagine it doing much for the likes of Alex Kingston.

I forgot about Rose but she was a few years ago now, and got a big acting gig this year. She toured straight after it? I can’t really remember but I do agree it definitely lifted her profile. Not sure about AJ? Would she not have got the Big Brother job had she not taken part in Strictly? Will co presents and never had any high profile presenting jobs years prior to BB and AJ had other jobs for ITV leading up to it.

 

[Rita]

Unfortunately if they are not getting paid greatly I don’t think it is quite the coup of a job it was going back to years ago and most celebs are only really taking part for what they can gain from it.

 

[Finn]

I'd love a The Rest Is Entertainment DEEP DIVE with the Strictly booking team. (But with guest presenters so I don't have to tolerate Richard and Marina)

I guess globalisation has fucked a lot of past avenues. We don't have the UK mid-level boybands and girlbands anymore to keep the cast list topped up, and with the soaps dying and there being less UK-made TV in general it's no wonder we're getting reality stars and youtubers. Though I agree the latter makes makes sense for the reasons FetchFugly gives (no 15 year old knows who a person off regular telly is)

I'm surprised they've not gone for a Traitor yet, but I expect they probably need them to become famous for something else first, so it's not just Diane making 2 year old references to fizzy rosé. If Alexander keeps on with the Classic FM gig, or Francesca Cluedo Clothes gets a high profile gig on Interior Design Masters / This Morning, then they could be potentials for the future.

 

[lolly]

Minah and Jaz would both make sense as well, given their BBC radio jobs.

 

[FetchFugly]

Jake was rumoured for this year too.

 

[Shoat]

I guess globalisation has fucked a lot of past avenues. We don't have the UK mid-level boybands and girlbands anymore to keep the cast list topped up, and with the soaps dying and there being less UK-made TV in general it's no wonder we're getting reality stars and youtubers.

This makes a lot of sense. There is a dwindling pool of British celebrities who feel like celebrities in the traditional sense.

For all of the hand wringing, we might just need to accept that social media and reality TV are just as valid routes to being a celebrity these days as appearing on the One Show or Eastenders.

If you look at the Instagram announcements, the ones with the biggest view counts have been George (by some distance), and then Dani and Vicky - so Strictly's approach isn't entirely without merit.

 

[Rita]

That isn’t STRICTLY true though is it? We have just as many presenters, news readers, actors, actresses, loose women (thank god that seems to have eventually ended) panellists ex pop stars who have not taken part before but I assume don’t want to for whatever reason. Breaking in to the influencers, and ex Love Islander stream does make sense but also seems to be going off piste to me a tad as a member of the Strictly main demographic.

 

[Rita]

That being said I adore Love Island and most reality tv so am happiest about Vicki Pattison and Dani Dyer out of the rest of that sorry scraping the bottom of the barrel line up.

 

[Ellie]

I do hope Stefan does a Salsa to this:

 

[Finn]

Minah and Jaz would both make sense as well, given their BBC radio jobs.

Ooh I wasn't aware they were now in the BBC stable. YES PLEASE to them over the two I mentioned, in that case.

 

[lolly]

That isn’t STRICTLY true though is it? We have just as many presenters, news readers, actors, actresses, loose women (thank god that seems to have eventually ended) panellists ex pop stars who have not taken part before but I assume don’t want to for whatever reason. Breaking in to the influencers, and ex Love Islander stream does make sense but also seems to be going off piste to me a tad as a member of the Strictly main demographic.

But the influencers and reality stars are probably more happy to commit for the £ offer as they have potentially more to gain.

And as I've said pretty much every year for ages, I don’t think the calibre of the celebrity makes that much difference to the enjoyment of the series for most people. The majority of people who gripe year on year about the level of celebrity aren't interested in the first place.

 

[Rita]

But the influencers and reality stars are probably more happy to commit for the £ offer as they have potentially more to gain.

And as I've said pretty much every year for ages, I don’t think the calibre of the celebrity makes that much difference to the enjoyment of the series for most people. The majority of people who gripe year on year about the level of celebrity aren't interested in the first place.

I do agree it is the reality stars job to get noticed and bump up their profile at every given opportunity. I just don’t agree with the pool getting smaller personally. We are littered with celebrities in the UK.

I have always been one of the most active posters in the strictly thread up until last year, and as I have said previously I have always enjoyed the glitz and glamour of it all but people like Go Compare man and Thomas Skinner don’t lure me in.

 

[lolly]

We have celebrities, but I think it's true with globalisation and the fracturing of media that the level of celebrity in the traditional sense is diminishing.

 

[jyxz]

Don’t forget that there are also many ‘traditional’ celebrities who campaign to be asked who are always overlooked for whatever reason (Rita Crudgington)

 

[Rita]

We have celebrities, but I think it's true with globalisation and the fracturing of media that the level of celebrity in the traditional is diminishing.

Do you mean in the sense of soap stars/tv presenters/actors/actresses etc not having as much of an internet or social media presence as the likes of ex Love Islanders and other social media influencers?

 

[Rita]

Don’t forget that there are also many ‘traditional’ celebrities who campaign to be asked who are always overlooked for whatever reason (Rita Crudgington)

Countless 80’s/90’s/00’s former popstars who are well know would surely want to take part but then maybe not if it’s the money element? They seem to have moved away from former high profile politicians too.

 

[Devil]

I guess it’s more when we had limited media formats, no social media etc, celebrities were more likely to be known to relatively everyone as you were exposed to them via TV/print etc regularly. Nowadays you can have people that are huge celebrities in their niche areas but completely unknown to others, so trying to find people that cross those borders is getting harder and harder.

 

[Rita]

I guess it’s more when we had limited media formats, no social media etc, celebrities were more likely to be known to relatively everyone as you were exposed to them via TV/print etc regularly. Nowadays you can have people that are huge celebrities in their niche areas but completely unknown to others, so trying to find people that cross those borders is getting harder and harder.

Social media stars would fall in to that category with the majority of strictly viewers though, no? Im not getting the point.

 

[lolly]

Countless 80’s/90’s/00’s former popstars who are well know would surely want to take part but then maybe not if it’s the money element? They seem to have moved away from former high profile politicians too.

Thomas Skinner is taking that role this year.

 

[straightorbroken]

I just want nice asses to perv at and women I'd have bought their singles CD1&2 had they had record deals in the 90s. It's not too much to ask for.

In all seriousness, it's probably even for the best not to know who most are. Very surprised at Alex K - what an icon.

 

[FetchFugly]

NO HODOR



I wonder if they will parachute someone else in. It would probably be a good idea so they aren't already one short in the case of mid-series mishaps.

 

[FetchFugly]

Replacement on The One Show tonight.

 

[lolly]

It'll be 'interesting' to see the calibre of who was presumably always lined up in the event of a drop out.

 

[FetchFugly]

Wynne was apparently a reserve last year

And there was obviously Kelvin Fletcher who was brought in for Jamie Laing.

 

[Nancy]

Ooh, could be Martin Roberts

 

[rhythmbandit]

Not a clue.

Edit: I remember him from such shows as Emmerdale.

 

[Rita]

 

[FetchFugly]

Looks like a decent run on Emmerdale and some guest roles before that. I suppose considering he is replacing someone way down the GoT cast list who realistically was chosen because he is very tall you couldn't really expect much more.

From a brief look at his Instagram you can tell it will be shirt off, tits out week two at the latest.