Strictly Come Dancing head judge Shirley Ballas has admitted she found it a “struggle” to predict the celebrity-professional pairings ahead of the first live show of 2026. The launch show, which aired last weekend, saw the new couples revealed for the first time following the departures of long-time hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.
‘Absolute chaos and carnage’ during speed dancing
Ballas, who returned to the panel alongside Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke, described the pairing routines as “absolute chaos and carnage”. The dancers were paired during ‘speed dancing’ routines, and Ballas said she had “never seen anything like it”.
“Totally new, totally fresh and totally bonkers. We genuinely didn’t know who was going to end up with who and it made the launch one like never before,” she said.
Surprise pairings revealed
The 66-year-old admitted she was surprised by the majority of the pairings, which include Lacey Turner and Vito Coppola, Delta Goodrem and Kai Widdrington, Graeme Hall and Lauren Oakley, and same-sex couple Bethany Antonia and Nancy Xu.
“I really did struggle to work out who’d be with who this year. We’ve got a dance floor full of personalities and Motsi and I we’re absolutely dying with laughter at the desk watching the chaos of the pairings unfold,” Ballas said.
Advice for the celebrities
Looking ahead to the live dances, Ballas said she “genuinely cannot wait” to see all the couples perform. She advised the celebrities to “listen to your teacher” and not to overthink.
“You’ve studied, you’ve practiced and all that is left to do is prove to yourself what you are capable of. Don’t overthink, don’t change anything and just live in the moment. And as our dearest Len (Goodman) used to say “Turn up, show up and shut up!””
Ballas also recalled one of her most memorable debut performances: former Emmerdale star Kelvin Fletcher’s samba with dance partner Oti Mabuse in 2019. The pair went on to win the series. “It was of a quality I’d never seen in week one before and he wasn’t even supposed to be on the show! It was simply brilliant and I still think about it to this day,” she said.
As for being on Strictly, Ballas said she loves “simply walking into the studio every Saturday and seeing my Strictly family”. She added: “And I must add, sitting next to Anton Du Beke every Saturday is fun – he’s like a naughty school boy!”
Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One on Saturdays and BBC iPlayer. The first live show of 2026 airs on Saturday, September 26, presented by Emma Eillis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe.
