Strictly Come Dancing 2023: 8 facts you didn’t know
Since Be sure to come dance First broadcast in 2004, it brings glitter, rhinestones and dad dancing to Saturday night television.
Over the years, Strictly has become one of the biggest shows on British television, with 10 million people tuning in every week as they watch the celebrity contestants go from stomping to fleet-footed.
Here are eight things you didn’t know about Be sure to come dance…
It is the world’s most successful reality TV format
When it started in a small BBC studio, Strictly seemed like a celebrity reality competition series like any other. But since then the show has continued to grow not only in the UK but also abroad.
First broadcast under this name Dancing with the starsIt is the world’s most successful reality television format and is licensed in more than 75 countries, including the USA, China and India.
Achieving a perfect 40 is difficult, but not impossible
Achieve top grades Strictly – the perfect 40 points – is the dream for every couple on the show. Over the show’s 20 seasons, more than 80 different dances received full marks, with former pro Pasha Kovelev taking home 13 of them. He scored five of those top scores with Pussycat Dolls star Ashley Roberts and three with the late TV presenter Caroline Flack.
The results show is pre-recorded
During the (recorded) results show, the couples face off in the dance competition
(BBC)
I’m sorry to break the illusion, but this Strictly The results show isn’t live and hasn’t been since 2009. Yes, the judges and hosts may wear different clothes and talk about “last night’s show,” but Sunday’s episode will actually be recorded after voting ends on Saturday.
The name has an interesting origin
If you’ve ever wondered where StrictlyThe name comes from, that’s your answer. Come dance was a ballroom dancing competition series that aired on the BBC from 1949 to 1998 and also included non-celebrities. When they recast the series as a reality series, they merged the name with the 1992 Baz Luhrmann film Strictly Ballroom to add a bit of pizzazz…
There is not just one type of tango Strictly
That wouldn’t be the case Strictly without fake tan, something many of the contestants are forced to do before the season begins. In fact, the series’ fake tan team uses a whopping 57 liters of it per series. So if you feel an orange glow on your TV screens, that’s why!
The best players in the show often don’t win
Individually, Ashley Roberts and Pasha Kovalev tied with Alexandra Burke and Gorka Márquez for the most 10s scored by a couple, amassing an impressive 32 points in their respective seasons. Interestingly, neither pair won the years they competed.
The one-mark paddle appears (occasionally).
Quentin Wilson scored twice for his Cha Cha Cha in 2004
(BBC)
On the other end of the spectrum, the one-point paddle was brought out several times as recently as 2010 StrictlyThe 18 seasons of ‘s, with most of them – surprise, surprise! – given by Craig Revel Horwood. One of the lowest scoring dances was Quentin Wilson and Hazel Newberry’s Cha Cha Cha in season two, which scored a total of eight points. Ouch.
The costume team has a lot to do
Putting together the costumes for Strictly is no easy task as the team (led by Vicky Gill) has to produce around 300 outfits over the course of the season. The outfits are usually made over the course of the week, with each ball gown requiring eight to ten meters of fabric and the last fitting taking place on Fridays.
Be sure to come danceBBC One’s live shows air on BBC One on Saturday evenings.
