Anton Du Beke made his first appearance as a permanent judge on Strictly Come Dancing last year, replacing Bruno Tonioli – and it’s a move fellow judge Craig Revel Horwood hopes will stick.
Du Beke has been on the show since its first season in 2004 and was a professional dancer for 18 seasons.
He took on a judging role for two weeks in 2020, before sitting in the seat for 2021’s full run, after Bruno Tonioli was unable to fly to the UK because of COVID restrictions.
Revel Horwood has now told The Sun: “I am so pleased now that he is a judge, finally. There are only so many years you can be front-row dancing, then the second row, then the third and fourth. Then the only place left, darling, is a dancer’s sheer death – in the wings.
“I was pleased they got him off the dancefloor and then put him where he belongs. I hope he comes back next year. I loved it, absolutely.”
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Tonioli meanwhile remains a judge on the American version of the show, Dancing with the Stars, and the lineup on this year’s Strictly judging panel has yet to be officially announced.
In other Strictly news, Oti Mabuse recently announced that she will not be returning to the show this year, after a seven-year stint as one of the series’ professionals.
Read more: Andrew Garfield says Strictly Come Dancing is on his “bucket list”
Strictly Come Dancing 2021 is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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