Fresh social media analysis by William Hill Vegas has found a predominantly negative online response to Strictly Come Dancing's new presenting lineup following the debut live show of the new series.
The bookmaker examined online chatter surrounding Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe from Saturday's opening show start time through to midnight on Sunday, using social listening platform Meltwater, alongside a wider search for discussions about the programme's new hosts.
Majority of posts negative
The broader "Strictly presenters" search revealed that 52.9% of online posts were negative, compared with just 2.9% positive.
The individual searches showed a similarly divided picture, though Radebe was the only member of the trio to achieve more positive than negative sentiment in the data examined, with 23.5% positive compared with 26.5% negative.
Willis recorded 12% positive sentiment against 64% negative, while Widdicombe registered 8.7% positive and 48.8% negative.
Transition into new roles
"There has been plenty of discussion about Strictly's new presenting team since they were announced, but it's interesting to now have some data behind that reaction."
"The wider conversation around the new presenters is clearly more negative than positive at the moment, with more than half of the posts picked up in our broader search carrying negative sentiment."
"That doesn't necessarily mean viewers have made up their minds after one live show, but it does show that the changes have created a significant amount of conversation online."
"Johannes has perhaps had the smoothest transition into the new role given his years on Strictly as a professional, but all three presenters are still finding their feet in a completely new format."
The first live show kicked off on Saturday, and the data covers posts from its start through to midnight on Sunday.
