‘In the old days of Strictly we use to know everybody,’ said the professional dancer and judge. Anton Du Beke has made an awkward confession about celebrity contestants who appear on popular dancing competition,Strictly Come Dancing. The 58-year-old has appeared on every series of the show since its inception in 2004. Over the years, he’s judged a variety of contestants including the show’s latest winner, Chris McCausland.
![[Du Beke admitted he doesnt know ‘half’ the people who go on the show]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/16/09/newFile.jpg)
The 47-year-old comedian from Liverpool made history as the first ever blind contestant to compete on the popular dancing contest, and lifted the Glitterball Trophy along with his professional dance partner Dianne Buswell in December. However, Du Beke admitted that he’s stopped recognising the celebrities that go on the programme.
“But they all turn out to be marvellous. For example, I didn’t know of Tasha Ghouri [last year’s runner-up, and known for her stint on Love Island], but she was extraordinarily fabulous. “I had no idea who Joe Sugg was either [YouTuber and 2018 finalist].”.
He added: “In the old days of Strictly, we used to know everybody.”. Du Beke compared celebrities on the dance contest to those on reality shows as he explained: “Strictly is not Love Island. There’s no point seeing gorgeous 25-year-olds dancing fabulously. We want the celebrity partners to reflect the people who watch the show.”.
