Dani Dyer has admitted her return to Strictly Come Dancing has been emotional as the start of the 2026 series, set for September, gets ever closer.
The former Love Island winner will get her dancefloor once again as she was revealed in the celebrity line-up for the next run of the BBC One dance contest, having been forced to withdraw last year.
Injury and Replacement
Dani had been announced as being paired with professional dancer Nikita Kuzmin during the 2025 series launch show last September, but she was forced to pull out of the competition series just days before the first live show on September 27.
She wasn't able to continue in the competition after she fell and fractured her ankle during rehearsal, and was subsequently replaced by Amber Davies, with the West End theatre star going on to make the final of Strictly 2025 alongside Nikita.
Return Announcement
But it was announced in June that Dani will be returning to Strictly to compete in the 2026 run of the competition. Speaking in a video as her return was revealed, Dani said: "Hi everyone. I'm so excited to say that I'm going to be back in the ballroom this September.
"I just cannot wait to get my dancing shoes back on, and hopefully this time around I can actually make it to week one! I'm just over the moon and cannot wait to see everyone else that's on it. See you soon, Strictly!"
Emotional Update
At the end of last week, the celebrities joined Strictly's group of professional dancers for the first time and offered an update in a video shared to her TikTok page.
Speaking directly to the camera, Dani, who is married to footballer Jarrod Bowen, said: "Hello, my lovelies. I have felt so emotional today... Day two of [my] period, though! Obviously, yesterday was the first day of dancing with Strictly stuff and it's just felt so weird I'm here a year on.
"It's just crazy. Obviously, this time last year I was preparing to do [the] last series and then it all fell to s**t and now I'm doing it again and I'm more emotional. Last year, I was just really, really excited and this year, I'm obviously super, super excited, but obviously I'm feeling really emotional about it. It just feels really weird and I just feel really grateful."
And fans were quick to show their support. One said: "Rooting for you this year!!" Another shared: "Have the best time on Strictly Dani, looking forward to seeing you on the dancefloor." A third replied: "Aww cant wait to see u on strictly this year." A fourth added: "Good luck with strictly Dani. Hope it all works out this time for you."
