Strictly Come Dancing has faced a fresh rating blow after losing nearly a million viewers on the first live show compared to previous years – which has reportedly left show bosses concerned for its future.
The glitz and glamour was in full swing on Saturday night as the 15 celebrities took to the dancefloor for the first time with their professional partners and scored on their dancing skills.
Love Island star Tasha Ghouri and JLS singer JB Gill set the standard for the competition, both leaving judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton du Beke blown away with their technical skills.
Meanwhile, The Only Way is Essex star Pete Wicks and singer Toyah Willcox failed to impress and ended up at the bottom of the leaderboard – with Horwood bringing out the number two paddle.
Whilst many excited fans tuned in to see who would sink and who would swim, many didn’t even turn the channel over to watch the first five minutes – leaving the ratings at a low.
It has been reported that figures show that at its peak, 6.7 million fans tuned in and watched the live edition on Saturday – however, the otherwise impressive figure was no match for the 2023 season which grossed 7.3 million viewers for the first live show.
The figures are recorded as the lowest for the first live show of a series since it began, with the record being in 2020 when 10.2 million tuned in – especially after the launch show lost over a million viewers.
BBC show bosses are now said to be concerned about the lack of interest in this years series, and according to The Sun, a TV insider said: “Strictly bosses were worried enough by the pre-recorded launch show.
“But the fact that the first live show saw a drop too will be of concern to them — particularly if the drop continues into next week, which is the first elimination show.
“They now face an anxious wait to see whether the drop in on-the-night viewers is made up for by an increase in fans watching Strictly on iPlayer, but those figures take days and weeks to compile.
“These live figures really matter to the Beeb, because Strictly is still seen as one of the few shows that provide the shared TV experience where people come together to watch a programme at a set time.”
The decline in figures comes following the ongoing “bullying” and “abuse” scandal which came after Sherlock star Amanda Abbington claimed her experience with Giovanni Pernice left her “bruised” – he has continued to deny the allegations.
Pernice’s departure from the show was swiftly followed by Graziano Di Prima being axed after he was accused of “kicking, hitting and spitting” at partner Zara McDermott – he later admitted to kicking the star but denied all other claims.
Despite the decline, the show made history as Chris McCausland became the first blind contestant to take part – with the comedian and his partner Diane Buswell leaving the viewers as well as the judges blown away.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Gary Lineker ‘wanted to uncover the truth’ on Jermaine Jenas’ BBC dismissal as MOTD salary to be slashedTom Jones, 84, makes candid admission as The Voice co-star brands him ‘inspiration’Huw Edwards able to visit children’s playgrounds and use internet after sex crime sentencing
McCausland and Buswell performed the Cha Cha to Twist and Shout by The Beatles and received a score of 23 from the judges – pleasing the star who initially admitted he was “terrified” of being on the show.
In the run-up to making his debut, he confessed he had questioned his decision to take part and revealed he started panicking over the impact his lack of sight would have on his performance.
Since his performance on Saturday, bookmakers Betfred have slashed his odds of winning the series from 14/1 to 7/2, meaning he is hot on Ghouri’s heels as she currently sits at 3/1.
