The new Strictly Come Dancing hosts have hinted at how the show will work with three presenters – rubbishing one of the biggest claims that’s been made ahead of the 2026 series.
Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe will be at the helm when the BBC’s Saturday night staple returns later this month, taking over from the longtime (and much-loved) hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.
During their 11-year stint presenting Strictly together, Daly and Winkleman had specific roles, with the former anchoring the programme, introducing the dances and supporting the couples as they received feedback.
Meanwhile, Winkleman spent the majority of each live show in the “Clauditorium” and spoke to each pair as they waited for their scores to be revealed, offering welcome levity during the many emotional moments.
With three hosts stepping in to replace the duo, bosses will be shaking up the format – but the exact plan for what each will do still isn’t set in stone.
open image in galleryAhead of the launch episode on Saturday 19 September, the new presenters have appeared on the podcast The Rest Is Entertainment, where Willis explained: “There’s no like for like, so no one’s kind of replacing anybody and at the minute it’s all very kind of open isn’t it?
“We’re having lots of production days where we go in and we play around and we’re kind of feeling each other out, well, they’re feeling us out really.”
“It’s going to be like Total Football,” Widdicombe added, referring to the football tactic where players are not fixed to a single spot. “We’re going to be moving everywhere.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
One thing that has been decided though, is that “there’s definitely no backstage roving reporter, which has been reported quite a bit”, Willis added.
“Where did that come from? I want to know,” said Radebe, who had been widely touted for the backstage role.
open image in galleryWillis also revealed that bosses pitched the “wildcard” option of having three Strictly hosts as the presenters were doing chemistry reads with the various other stars also on the shortlist for the jobs.
“They said it’s so much of a wild card, we don’t really have a script for you either,” the Big Brother presenter said. “So we’re going to sit down, get it up on the screen and we’ll have a little tinker all together.
“So we sat there didn’t we? Like this is going… What is going on?”
Daly and Winkleman announced their shock decision to leave Strictly midway through last year’s series and the show said a fond farewell to the pair in the 2026 series finale – with judge Craig Revel Horwood reading out a letter from the Queen.
It’s not just the presenting line-up that will be different when the show returns, as five new professional dancers have joined the Strictly gang, following the exits of Karen Hauer, Gorka Marquez, Nadiya Bychkova, Luba Mushtuk and Michelle Tsiakkas.
And in a departure from recent years, the 2026 Strictly contestants, including the likes of EastEnders star Lacey Turner and Australian singer Delta Goodrem, will be paired with their professional partners in the show’s ballroom during the launch show, instead of via prerecorded segments.
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One and iPlayer on Saturday 19 September. Watch or listen to The Rest Is Entertainment wherever you get your podcasts.