Strictly Come Dancing news & rumour round-up – January 24
31 January 2024While we may be missing Strictly on our televisions every weekend at this time of the year, with the SCD Live tour underway and other Strictly stars getting out and about there’s definitely still a bit of a Strictly buzz in the air and our news feed is updated daily with press coverage we find related to the show – whether it be judges, pro dancers, hosts or celebrities.
There’s a lot to look through, so in our monthly ‘News and Rumour Round-Up’ post we’ll bring you some highlights just to help keep that little bit of Strictly sparkle in your lives! Enjoy.
Strictly Celebs 2024?
After separating from England and Manchester City footballer Kyle Walker, rumours have flown that Annie Kilner would love nothing more than to join the Strictly cast in 2024. With a fourth baby due in April though, we’re not sure how likely this is.
Daughter-in-law of England footballing legend David Beckham, Nicola Peltz Beckham (wife of Brooklyn) was another celebrity rumoured to be throwing her hat into the Strictly ring earlier this month.
As previous years have shown however, these early runners and riders seldom make it to the starting line, so don’t get too excited about seeing David and Victoria in the audience just yet.
Babies, Birthdays, Boyfriends, Broken Glitterballs and That Rat!
As always there has been lots of stories about friendships, relationships, major life events and new ventures for Strictly celebrities past and present. Here are some of our favourites.
It Takes Two presenter Fleur East started the New Year with the announcement that she and husband fashion stylist Marcel Badiane-Robin are expecting their first child.
Just a couple of days later, former pro Oti Mabuse posted an adorable clip of her dancing with her new baby daughter and husband Marius Lepure.
Angela Rippon – Strictly’s oldest ever contestant – is continuing to grab headlines with news of her grand plans for celebrating becoming an octogenarian in October this year along with her age-defying performances on the Strictly Live Tour. Here’s hoping we’re that fabulous at 80!
- ‘I’d love for people to be inspired by things I’ve done’: Angela Rippon on Strictly and her TV career still going strong in her late 70s
- Angela Rippon shows of her prowess as the Strictly Come Dancing live tour gets underway with moves you’d think were off limits for a 79-year-old
- Strictly star is planning ‘crazy’ three-day Las Vegas party bash for milestone 80th birthday
After splitting from her third husband last year, Karen Hauer has found love anew with former rugby player Simon Davidson and looks like she’s never been happier, the pair apparently having been introduced to each other by Gorka.
While the romance rumour mill has been in overdrive about Ellie Leach and her various admirers, here at StrictlyDB we felt it was of much greater public interest that after her Glitterball trophy broke in her luggage during a train ride from London to Manchester, it was Ellie’s amazing Dad who managed to save her blushes and fix it so it now has pride of place in the family home.
One of our favourite news items this month involves Joe Sugg, former Strictly finalist and partner of Dianne Buswell, who made history after banking £201,000 for his team on Celebrity Chase. Sadly when it came to the final chase, Joe (32) and his team-mates Myles Stephenson, David James and Lucrezia Millarini were caught by Paul Sinha (aka Sinnerman) with 30 seconds to spare. No doubt the team behind the Chase breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Shirley Ballas made the headlines this month after surprising everyone when she was unmasked as the Rat on ITV’s ‘The Masked Singer’. Despite being the third celebrity to leave the show, Shirley said it has inspired her to carry on singing and even get a Rat tattoo!
Finally, as well as preparing for this third UK touring dance show – House of JoJo, which begins at the end of March, Johannes Radebe has been busy studying for the Life in the UK test which forms a required part of obtaining British Citizenship and being able to settle permanently here. The great news is – he passed, and so is here to stay. Read more about his inspirational story in this Guardian interview.
Hair and Wig News!
Believe it or not, January has been a big month for hair-related Strictly stories and Claudia’s fringe did not even get a look in. Here – in no particular order – are the main highlights.
On Monday’s Loose Women, Anton du Beke revealed he’s recently had a hair transplant, and praised the doctor undertaking it as a ‘genius’.
Anton also discussed the issue of Ellie’s lost hair piece, which apparently fell off at the end of her Paso Doble with Vito at the Strictly Live Glasgow show, leaving the 22-year old in a fit of the giggles.
Dianne Buswell announced on Instagram that surprisingly despite her trademark red tresses, red is actually one of her least favourite colours – who knew?
Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour
The Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour is in full swing, having started in Birmingham on January 19th and running until the final show at London’s O2 Arena on February 11th; Layton & Nikita have won the most live shows so far but Bobby & Dianne are nipping at their heels. Everything still to dance for!
Craig has been chatting about the ‘obsessed’ Strictly fans coming to the show – obsessed, us? Surely not…
The sparkles are certainly out in spades for the live shows and the Barbie-themed group number is going down a storm with live audiences.
Training Room Controversy
On a more serious note, a great deal of coverage this month has been of issues resulting from Amanda Abbington’s early withdrawal from the show for personal reasons and subsequent reports that she had requested from the BBC footage of her training rehearsals with Giovanni Pernice. Any outcomes for the show or its pro star are as yet unclear but Giovanni has appeared on TV defending his training regime and the BBC has commented that the duty of care towards Strictly contestants is taken ‘incredibly seriously’.
- BBC addresses Strictly ‘scandal’ as Amanda Abbington requests ‘tense’ Giovanni training footage
- Giovanni Pernice opens up about his gruelling 18-hour training sessions and strict attitude to losing after dividing fans amid Amanda Abbington drama
Amazing Amy
Amy Dowden’s honesty about the difficulties she has faced during her treatment for breast cancer, and her role in helping to raise awareness and understanding of the issues and challenges involved – physical, emotional, social and psychological – have been amazing. Amy began 2024 with an announcement of her ambition to become the first Welsh pro to lift the Glitterball and bring it home for Welsh Strictly fans next Series. Definitely a goal we could get behind. Go Amy!
We hope you enjoy this round-up and please let us know of anything we’ve missed by sharing in the comments below. Keep dancing!
