He said: “I’m not wearing any sequins, and no glitter, it’s all very classical”. This series, otherwise known as “Dancing with the Stars” for viewers in America, somehow manages every year to be one of the nation’s biggest shows, even if not all of the celebrities are altogether that famous.
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They were matched up tonight and danced together on air for the first time as part of the group performance, before the competitive shows begin.
Foote and Pernice met when they were partnered on the dancing show in 2015.
Daisy’s paired with Strictly hunk Aljaž Skorjanec: in 2013, he won the series with partner Abbey Clancey.
Mark Bell, the BBC’s head of commissioning, arts, said: “We’ve loved having Claudia on Film 2016 and I’d like to thank her for all her hard work and commitment to the show”.
Balls will compete against singer Will Young, model Daisy Lowe, Olympian Greg Rutherford and actresses Lesley Joseph and Tameka Empson.
Head judge Len Goodman will be joined on the panel for his final stint by Bruno Tonioli, Darcey Bussell and Craig Revel Horwood, with the judging only starting once the celebrities have nailed their first routine.
Last year’s launch episode got an average of 8.7 million viewers.
The 14th series of the ballroom dancing show, which beat The X Factor in the ratings previous year, goes live in three weeks.
Strictly’s success comes in stark contrast to the dwindling popularity of one of Simon Cowell’s prime-time hits, The X Factor, which suffered its lowest launch ratings in 10 years on 27 September.
ITV denied the The X Factor was suffering and said the episode’s figures are up year-on-year – the same episode last year was watched by 7.7 million.
Strictly’s blockbusting viewing figures come just days after The Great British Bake Off pulled in 10.14 million viewers – nearly half of those watching television in the United Kingdom between 8pm and 9pm – for the second episode in its latest series.
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ITV said the figures are up year on year – the third episode last year was watched by 7.7 million (35.3% share).
