A supercomputer has predicted the winner of Strictly Come Dancing 2026, and the data points to actress Bethany Antonia as the most likely champion.
The glitzy BBC One show has returned for its new series, hosted by Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe. Celebrities including Lacey Turner, Jamie Winstone, Chris Appleton, Cach Mercer, Delta Goodrem and Dame Sarah Storey have all signed up to compete on the dance floor.
Supercomputer analysis of past winners
ActionNetwork.com’s supercomputer analysed the characteristics of the past 23 winners to identify typical champion traits and determine which 2026 contestants share the most of them.
According to more than 20 years’ worth of data, Bethany Antonia was found to have the most traits of a typical Strictly Come Dancing winner, picking up 8 points from the supercomputer.
Key traits and odds
The common traits include her star sign being Capricorn, tied for the most common sign among Strictly champions. She was also born on a Thursday, the third-most common birth weekday among past winners. Aged 28, she falls into the "late 20s" age bracket, also among the most frequent ages for a winner at the time of their victory.
Currently, she has the highest odds of winning the series at 3/2, with an implied probability of 40%.
An ActionNetwork.com spokesperson commented: "Bethany Antonia stands out as the contestant whose profile most closely matches that of a typical Strictly Come Dancing champion, with her age, birthplace, occupation, birth weekday and star sign all matching common traits from past winners."
"The supercomputer gave Antonia 8 points, and she currently has the shortest odds to win the 24th series at 3/2, while Cach Mercer, Dani Dyer, Tabby Stoecker and Will Best all got 6 points from the supercomputer, with their odds of winning the series at 11/2."
Bethany Antonia's career
Bethany has had roles in shows like Get Even, Stay Close and Sense and Sensibility. Her biggest part to date has been portraying dragon rider Lady Baela Targaryen in HBO’s Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon since 2022.
Strictly Come Dancing airs every weekend on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
