By Danni King,Mark Jefferies
Copyright walesonline
Television judge Anton Du Beke has confessed that he struggles to identify many of the celebrities selected for Strictly Come Dancing nowadays. Reflecting widespread public sentiment that the BBC dance programme’s roster can occasionally fall short of the star power seen in earlier series, he acknowledged that his initial encounter with some participants might well be in the ballroom itself. Anton remarked: “When I first started, we sort of knew them, but now as you get older… there are a number of people on the show that I am not familiar with.” Discussing last year’s model participant, Tasha Ghouri, he continued: “I mean, last year, Tasha? I did not know Tasha. No, I don’t know a number of people on the show.” However, he has grown accustomed to feeling somewhat perplexed, as increasing numbers of digital influencers join the programme, noting: “You don’t know who they are, but that is normal.” Regarding the 25-year-old YouTuber set to grace the dance floor in 2025, he commented, “There is that lovely boy George Clarke doing it this year. I thought it was the buildings, fella, George Clarke the architect.” Despite having witnessed performances from the competitors who will be showcasing their talents on television from this Saturday, he remains unable to predict a victor, reports the Mirror . Anton, 59, recalled being pressed for an early assessment during the launch show recording and responded: “They made it down the stairs unaided. I don’t know what you want me to say. Ask me next week when they have danced a bit.” This year’s line-up of 15 celebrities includes four reality TV personalities: Vicky Pattison, 37, Thomas Skinner, 34, Dani Dyer, 29, and La Voix, 45. The sports world is also well represented with four stars: sprinter Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, 37; footballers Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, 53; and Karen Carney, 38; and rugby union player Chris Robshaw, 39. Actors form the largest group, with five participants: Stefan Dennis, 66, Alex Kingston, 62, Balvinder Sopal, 46, Ellie Goldstein, 23, and Lewis Cope, 30. Presenter Ross King, 63, and YouTuber George round out the list. At a recent event to promote his new novel, Monte Carlo by Moonlight, Anton revealed that he’ll be closely observing the celebrities’ body language. He shared his insights on judging, saying, “As I sit there, I know exactly what has been going on. I can see by this routine what sort of a week you have had, and I laugh. “If they start at the top of the stairs and walk down, they have had a very difficult week, like they are wasting as much time as they can until they get on the floor and have to take hold. The waltz is always lovely to judge. You can always see how good and bad their week has been by how long they stay ‘in hold’.” The premiere of the new series of Strictly Come Dancing will air at 6.40pm on Saturday on BBC1 and BBC iPlayer.
