Former Strictly Come Dancing professional James Jordan has said the judging panel should have been shaken up, as the BBC show returns with new presenters and five new professional dancers.
Strictly Come Dancing is officially back in action, with viewers having seen the 15 celebrities paired with their professional partners during the launch show. Following the departure of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, the show now boasts three presenters, with Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Strictly pro Johannes Radebe stepping in to helm the competition.
Emma and Josh were not the only fresh faces on the show, as audiences also welcomed five new professional dancers into the fold, following the exit of some fan favourites, including Karen Hauer, Gorka Márquez and Nadiya Bychkova.
James Jordan on the judging panel
Speaking via WhichBingo, to Daily Star publishers Reach Plc, James opened up about the possibility of him ever returning to Strictly. When quizzed on whether fans might see him back on the dance floor in an all-star series, he responded: "No, I would go on the judging panel."
"I think the judging panel should have been shaken up a little bit as well, if they're going to make all of these changes. I find the judging panel a little bit wishy-washy for me. I think that could be a bit stronger."
Praise for the new presenting team
Speaking about the presenting team, James praised their efforts as a 'great job', describing Emma as 'amazing'. He went on: "I'm not 100% sure why they have three presenters, but hopefully once the show actually starts, it'll start to make more sense.
"I felt in the launch show, I didn't really get why they needed three. I didn't understand why they needed three presenters. We'll see, but Emma at the helm of the show, she's perfect for the job."
Handing over to the younger generation
Regarding the changing roster of professional dancers on the programme, James, who is currently preparing for his upcoming tour, Legends of the Dance floor, explained it's simply something viewers must come to terms with as he spoke about hanging up his own dancing shoes on the show back in 2014.
He remarked: "You have to let the younger generation come and take over, you hand the baton over to these new pros. People are getting better at dancing.
"It's great having pros on the show that you know and can relate to, but at some point, you have to hang up your dance shoes and go, 'you know what, let someone else have a go' cause at some point you've taken someone else's position. When I came on the show, someone was obviously not asked back, and I took their position."
"So my feeling is at some point I have to accept that I'm no longer going to be on the show and someone else is going to take over, and hopefully they do a great job. I'm sure the pros this year are all going to do a fantastic job. If you just look at Alexis (Warr) last year, what a brilliant addition to the team."
James further stated that while all the professionals do an 'amazing job', he emphasised that people need to recognise when it's time to 'hang your dancing shoes up'. Strictly Come Dancing continues Saturday September 26 on BBC One at 6:5pm.
