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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sean O'Grady

Dani Dyer shares excitement as Strictly Come Dancing rehearsals begin

Dani Dyer is one of the star’s taing part in this year’s series (Ian West/PA) - (PA Wire)

Dani Dyer is among the stars sharing their excitement as rehearsals for the new series of Strictly Come Dancing get under way.

The former Love Island star, who had to withdraw from last year’s competition because of an injury before the series began, is among the famous faces competing for the glitterball trophy in the 2026 series.

She shared a photo of herself in a car on the way to rehearsals and wrote: “First day of the Strictly fun begins… eeeek.”

Actress Jaime Winstone shared a video of herself doing a vocal warm-up for the play 2:22 A Ghost Story in 2023 and wrote: “Could do with this warm-up this morning!”

Jamie Winstone said she could “do with a warm-up” before heading into rehearsals (Ian West/PA) (PA Archive)
Jamie Winstone said she could “do with a warm-up” before heading into rehearsals (Ian West/PA) (PA Archive)

Paralympian Dame Sarah Storey also revealed she had her first wardrobe fitting for the programme on Thursday evening.

She said: “The colours, the gemstones, the tassels; I was like a little girl in a sweetshop, it was just incredible.”

She added: “I’m just really looking forward to learning a few moves now and seeing what the rest of this particular trip brings. It’s all started!”

The stars will have just a few weeks to learn their dances before the live shows begin in September.

The other celebrities taking part this year are: Melanie Walters, Lacey Turner, Delta Goodrem, Chris Appleton, Cach Mercer, Will Best, Bethany Antonia, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Graeme Hall, Lawrence Robb, Tabby Stoecker, and John Nellis.

The upcoming series of the BBC show will be hosted by broadcaster Emma Willis, professional dancer Johannes Radebe and comedian Josh Widdicombe.

They will replace Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, who announced they were leaving the show late last year.

The BBC has also confirmed five new professional dancers are joining the show this year: Aleksandra Isaeva, Cristian Priori, Lethabo Monametsi, Maddie Ingoldsby and Mark Karmalita.

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