With this year’s series ofStrictly Come Dancing well and truly underway, the newest season has already brought us highlights including its first ever BBC themed week,Tony Adams’ Full Monty inspired dance andHamza Yassin’s record-breaking performance.
And while viewers have been left on the edge of their seats throughout the series before, Strictly is known for its memorable moments and has seen some pretty dramatic performances from seasons gone by.
So, with that in mind, let’s take a peek at some of the most dramatic incidents from Strictly Come Dancing’s 20-year history…
Will Young quitting after three weeks
Despite being one of the favourites to win Strictly back in 2016, singerWill Young pulled out of the series after three weeks, citing “personal reasons” and the time of his departure. During an appearance on the Media Masters podcast in 2019, the 43 year old explained that he’d left in order to look after his mental health.
“I turned down £100,000, which I was being paid,” he said. “All the potential benefits of it. [It was the] best thing I ever did because now I know, well, I can leave at any stage. I’m not trapped. There’s nothing worse than feeling trapped.”
Laura Whitmore’s excruciating ankle injury
After being partnered up with Giovanni Pernice, former Love Island hostLaura Whitmore was forced to miss one show due to an ankle injury. Despite returning to the ballroom, the TV personality was the sixth contestant to be eliminated back in 2016.
Following her experience, 37 year old Laura opened up toExpress.co.uk about her injury and revealed that it stopped her from wearing certain shoes for months. “I was in quite a lot of pain and I'd never hurt my back before,” she said. “I never had physical problems in that way and I wasn’t able to wear high heels for six months.”
AJ Odudu’s withdrawal from the final
Having dominated the Strictly leaderboard week after week,AJ Odudu was tragically forced to quit the showafter tearing a ligament in her right ankle a day before the final. Announcing the heartbreaking news on Twitter, the 34 year old called the show “an incredible honour” and thanked her dance partner Kai for being so “special, patient and devoted”.
By pulling out of the show, Rose-Ayling Ellis and John Waite were left to go head to head in the final, with EastEnders star Rose taking home the Glitterball Trophy in 2021.
2008 phone voting scandal
Back in 2008, Strictly was hit by a scandal when it experienced a voting system failure. During the semi-finals,Rachel Stevens andLisa Snowden received identical votes at the top of the leaderboard, meaning that fellow contestant Tom Chambers could not move into the final even if he did receive the most public votes.
However, the Strictly team realised this after voters at home had begun to cast their votes, with the show moving all three contestants into the final and offering to give voters refunds.
Nikita's wardrobe malfunction
After finding themselves in the bottom two,Tilly Ramsay and Nikita Kyzmin were tasked with impressing the judges one last time as part of the dreaded dance-off. Part way through the dance however, professional dancerNikita ripped off his shirt in what fans couldn’t decide as being a wardrobe malfunction or a bid to remain in the competition.
Sadly, the pair were eliminated, with judge Craig Revel Horwood saying: “The dance off proved that they both improved enormously, although one was quite flashy and semi naked. But, I’d like to save Rhys and Nancy.”
Mark Ramprakash's microphone mishap
Mark Ramprakash may have ended up winning Strictly back in 2006, but things were always plain sailing. While dancing with Karen Hardy, the sportsman’s microphone became caught in her dress, causing the pair to stop in their tracks. Despite attempting to carry on, the pair called time on their dance though were given a chance to dance again, securing themselves 36 points.
Lindy-hop-athon scoring disaster
As part of the annual lindy-hop-athon, the judges’ scoring system turned into chaos as head judge Shirley Ballas mixed up the contestants’ scores. After giving Ashley Roberts seven points, Craig quickly handed her a piece of people which said that Shirley had given away the winner before even announcing the rest of the scores.
Disaster continued to unfold as the judges mixed up further positions, with host Claudia Winkleman joking: “If you are watching at home, goodness have a drink! And please help!”
Seann Walsh and Katya Jones' kissing scandal
Back in 2018,Seann Walsh and Katya Jones were involved in a kissing scandal after the two were pictured sharing a kiss, despite both having other romantic partners at the time.Following the aftermath of the incident, comedian Seann said that his life had “changed forever”.
Speaking on the Take Flight podcast in 2021, the 36 year old said: “Then it was suddenly the first time I was living without hope.
“A kiss and a statement destroyed my dreams and who I was. What I could have been, what my life could have been, what I could have made myself was gone.”
Robin Windsor’s staircase fall
They may put all of their energy into their performances, but at the end of each dance celebs and their partners run up Strictly’s spiral staircase to have a debrief with Claudia.
However, given that they run at lightspeed, it’s surprising that most stars manage to do so without accident – though former pro Robin Windsor was unlucky as he fell on the first step back in 2012. Fortunately, he appeared uninjured and continued to wave and cheer as he made his way to the top.
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