Strictly Come Dancing 2026 returns tonight with its first live show of the series, airing from 6.15pm to 8.45pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. The feature-length 150-minute episode sees all 15 couples take to the ballroom together for the very first time, with no public vote or elimination scheduled this week.
Judges deliver opening scores
Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe will greet the couples as they make their dance floor debuts. The celebrity contestants learned which professional dancer they had been paired with during last weekend's pre-recorded launch episode.
Head judge Shirley Ballas, alongside Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke, will deliver the opening round of scores. These results will carry forward to week two, when audiences get their first chance to vote for their favourite couples.
Schedule and spin-offs
Prior to Strictly, Amanda Holden's The Celebrity Inner Circle airs from 5.30pm for 45 minutes. After the show, comedian John Bishop's new gameshow Wisdom of the Crowd broadcasts from 8.45pm until 9.35pm.
Incoming host Ellie Taylor fronts her debut episode of companion series Strictly: It Takes Two on Monday, September 28. A second spin-off, Strictly: Lights Up, hosted by comedian Abi Clarke and presenter Tyler West, will air on Sundays on BBC iPlayer immediately after the results show concludes, featuring instant reactions from the evening's eliminated couple, their dance-off rivals, judges, hosts, fellow Strictly stars and studio guests.
Final date confirmed
BBC iPlayer will also launch a dedicated Strictly hub, including new weekly training room episodes with Abi visiting couples in rehearsals, plus a new weekly highlights show. Every dance throughout the series will be available to watch individually, and each episode will feature chapter navigation for the first time.
During the launch show, host Emma confirmed that Strictly will run for 13 weeks, meaning the grand finale will take place on Saturday, December 19. Former England Lioness Karen Carney won the Strictly Come Dancing 2025 title with professional partner Carlos Gu.
