Brendan Cole has admitted it "annoyed" him that new Strictly Come Dancing professionals were paid the same fee as him when they joined the BBC show years after he did. The 50-year-old appeared on Strictly from its launch in 2004 until 2017, when the BBC decided not to renew his contract.
Pay rise over the years
Brendan admitted that joining Strictly completely changed his life, revealing that he initially earned a flat fee of £11,000. While celebrities could earn more money as they progressed through the competition, the professionals' fee remained the same.
"It then jumped to £25,000, followed by £35,000 and then £40,000. By the time I left in 2017, I was being paid £51,000," he told the Daily Mail. "What annoyed me was that any new professionals who joined at that stage got the same money as me."
Departure and financial success
Brendan's departure from Strictly came as a shock to the dancer, who admitted he was "very disappointed" by the decision. However, he went on to reveal that his most lucrative year financially came immediately after leaving the show.
"The show took up six months of each year if you include the UK tour," he explained. "After that, I was free to tour in my own shows and sometimes I earned a five-figure, occasionally a six-figure, sum."
Brendan was one of Strictly's original professionals when the show launched in 2004, the year he went on to lift the glitterball trophy alongside Natasha Kaplinsky. He also won the 2017 Christmas special with presenter Katie Derham, marking his final competitive appearance on the programme.
Criticism of judge and exit
Last month, Brendan opened up about his bombshell Strictly exit and suggested that his outspoken criticism of judge Shirley Ballas may have played a role in the BBC's decision. "I don't condone the C-word," he said. "And at the time, I apologised for using it but I wasn't going to backtrack on it and say, 'Well, it wasn't true', because I thought it was true."
Brendan added: "Listen, I love Shirley, I think she's a great judge. At the time, I didn't think she was particularly nice to us and I vocalised that, some would argue it cost me the gig." The former Strictly star also admitted that he suspected his time on the show was coming to an end after a BBC boss, who had promised him continued work as long as she remained at the broadcaster, left to join rival network Channel 4.
