STRICTLY Come Dancing stars arrived for filming ahead of the new series amid the BBC show’s ongoing abuse probe.
With Lauren Oakley, Michelle Tsiakkas, and a smiling Neil Jones among them, the professional dancers remained upbeat as they continued working despite the ongoing controversies surrounding the show.
Michelle teamed a black crop top with denim shorts and tied a checkered shirt around her waist.
Neil arrived in a navy blue t-shirt and light wash denim jeans whilst Johannes Radebe wore a hot pink crocheted vest and orange trousers
Lauren opted for a white crop top and black trousers, carrying a black backpack and wore sunglasses as she headed to the studio.
Kai Waddington made an impression in a light blue suit with a blue crochet vest underneath.
The Sun has revealed that I’m A Celebrity star Sam Quek is the latest celebrity to sign up for Strictly.
The former Team GB Hockey star won gold in the Rio Olympics, and went on to launch a presenting career covering the Tokyo Games in 2020 and becoming team captain on A Question of Sport.
Earlier this week The Sun also revealed that Tasha Ghouri, who shot to fame on Love Island in 2022, has also signed up to take part in the BBC show.
Strictly has since faced a fresh controversy, with outraged fans criticizing the show for casting the star, who has years of dance experience.
Some fans had taken to Reddit to point out her dancing background.
One wrote on the discussion website: “Isn’t Tasha already a dancer? No one else will stand a chance.”
Another pointed out: “…But she’s literally a professional dancer?? Not even a musician or theatre actor who has had dance training, she’s a literal professional dancer.”
Other stars who may be on the 2024 lineup include, GK Barry, Millionaire businessman Dave Fishwick, blind comedian Chris McCausland and Homes Under The Hammer legend Martin Roberts.
Strictly was plunged into an abuse scandal afteractress Amanda Abbington, 50, claimed she told producers on Strictly Come Dancing that she didn’t ‘feel safe’ during rehearsals with Giovanni Pernice.
The actress made a complaint about the teaching methods of her former dance partner Giovanni months after withdrawing early from the 2023 series of the celebrity competition, citing medical issues.
Strictly Come Dancing's scandal has been growing over the past few months, with several major players speaking out about what went on. Here are the key moments of what's happened so far
16th May: Giovanni Pernice sensationally quits Strictly Come Dancing after nine years on the show.
17th May: Giovanni becomes the centre of an official investigation after three former partners – believed to be Amanda Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh – make complaints to the BBC.
16th June: Giovanni releases an official statement vowing to clear his name and denies any wrongdoing.
8th July: Strictly confirms Aljaz Skorjanec will return to the series, replacing Giovanni, after initially quitting the show two years ago.
10th July: Amanda Abbington launches fresh legal proceedings to get the rehearsal footage from her time with Giovanni, after allegedly he refused to release the videos.
13th July: Graziano Di Prima is axed from Strictly for “gross misconduct” after footage of his treatment of Zara McDermott is brought to the attention of the BBC.
Graziano quickly broke his silence, apologising for his behaviour in a statement and saying he “deeply regrets it”, adding his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected his training regime.”
15th July: Strictly bosses implement new duty of care protocols, including having a chaperone present throughout all rehearsals.
16th July: Zara McDermott speaks out publicly for first time. She states while the production team were “amazing to work with”, she found the rehearsal room “completely different”, confirming there’s footage of “certain situations”.
19th July: Anton Du Beke is put under the spotlight for his “1970s attitude” and treatment of female celeb stars, particularly after allegedly referring to 2009 partner Laila Rouass as a “p***” after getting a spray tan.
21st July: Paralympian Will Bayley, who has limb condition arthrogryposis, revealed he was encouraged to leap from a table during a dance routine, despite fears. The stunt caused an injury that forced him to withdraw from the show.
22nd July: MasterChef’s Gregg Wallace admits he broke down in tears and got a nasty stress rash on his face during his time on Strictly in 2014.
22nd July: Despite ongoing issues, the Strictly professional cast begin rehearsals for this year’s series.
23rd July: Celebrity agent Melanie Blake claims she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed pro dancer while backstage on the show, and claims she witnessed ageism, rudeness and a rough treatment to the point of injury.
23rd July: Strictly is forced to beef up security after ‘an intruder scales the wall of the rehearsal studio’.
23rd July: BBC boss Tim Davie breaks his silence on the ongoing allegations against Strictly, saying he is ‘deeply sorry’, adding: “Hundreds of people, be they pros, contestants or crew have been part of it and had a brilliant experience.
“At the same time if someone thinks there was something wrong or they want to talk about their experience then of course we want them to raise that with us. Be in no doubt we will take it seriously, listen and deal with it as appropriate.”
24th July: Strictly 2023 star Krishnan Guru-Murthy holds a bombshell interview with Amanda Abbington on Channel 4 news, where she claims she was bullied, with some of the ‘humilation being of a sexual nature’.
27th July: Laura Whitmore releases a statement regarding her Strictly experience, saying “I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong”.
She adds she is not part of the official complaint, but has come forward to support Amanda with the BBC, alongside others.
28th July: Laila Rouass speaks out against the accusations regarding Anton Du Beke, saying she “never felt pressured” by him and “personally insisted on six to seven hours training a day”.
Amanda had previously alleged that producers installed cameras in the training studio but failed to act on her claims.
The BBC has since began carrying out internal investigations about the allegations and Graziano Di Prima has been sacked following footage of him with partner Zara McDermott.
