Strictly Come Dancing's new presenting trio, Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe, filmed the launch episode of the show's 2026 series at Elstree Studios on Wednesday, with insiders describing an emotional night as 15 celebrities met their professional dance partners for the first time.
As is tradition for the BBC show, the launch episode was pre-recorded and will air on Saturday, September 19. This year's series has faced criticism from some fans over what they have called an underwhelming lineup, and it marks the first series since Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman stepped down as hosts after two decades presenting the show together.
Daly and Winkleman had fronted Strictly as a double act for twenty years, becoming one of the BBC's best known Saturday night presenting partnerships before their exit this year opened the door to a three-way overhaul of the format.
Johannes Radebe, who moved from professional dancer to beat contenders including Zoe Ball and Sara Cox to a spot in the new presenting trio, was reported to be teary-eyed at one point during filming. The dancer was full of emotion as Emma Willis held his hand and told the audience he had spent "eight years in this ballroom" and was honoured to take on the new challenge, according to insiders.
Recording runs into the night
The recording got underway at 5pm on Wednesday, with audience members in for a long night as the hosts worked to perfect their takes. Emma, Johannes and Josh revealed earlier this week that they still did not have clear guidance on how the presenting format would work, and the debut episode appeared to serve as a testing ground for different setups.
Instead of Daly guiding the celebrities through the judges' feedback and Winkleman conducting the post-dance debriefs upstairs in what was known as the "Clauditorium," the new format is far more free flowing. An insider told the Daily Mail: "At one point the three of them were upstairs on the sofa with the judges, at another point Johannes was introducing the judges solo and other times it was just two of them at a time."
Hosts take to the dancefloor
Although there have been reports of the presenters "fluffing their lines," an insider told the Daily Mail that "inevitably there was the odd retake as everyone got to grips with the format, but the hosts showed little sign of nerves." The insider added: "After half an hour you forgot they were the new Strictly presenters and just saw them as Strictly presenters."
The three hosts were also required to hit the dancefloor themselves during the recording, filming a group number involving the judges that will air later in the series. Emma Willis is a British television presenter best known for hosting Big Brother, while Josh Widdicombe is a comedian and presenter recognised for co-hosting The Last Leg, and both are new to Strictly's presenting team alongside Radebe this year.
New pairing format replaces group dance
In another significant change, the celebrity contestants were split into groups of five to take part in three "pairing" dances during the launch show, rather than the traditional all-cast number that has closed previous launch episodes.
The new format follows a loose musical chairs structure, with groups of celebrities dancing opposite the professionals before landing face to face with their eventual partner. "You got the shock and surprise of the pairings but with more dancing," the insider said.
The extra dances meant the finished launch show ran to 110 minutes, with recording not finishing until 11pm.
Viewers will have to wait until Saturday to see how the shakeup plays out when the launch show airs on BBC One at 7:25pm.
