Strictly releases first look picture of the new hosts with the judges as Josh Widdicombe admits he is a 'ball of fear' and Johannes Radebe says he has 'fomo' over not dancing

Strictly Come Dancing have released a first look at the new hosts with the judging line-up ahead of the launch show this weekend.As the photo of Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe with Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke was revealed, the presenters appeared on The One Show to discuss their nerves before the show.Comedian Josh, 43, was the first to confess he is feeling the nerves ahead of the first show airing on Saturday night, which is a pre-record revealing the dance pairings.He told hosts Alex Jones and Roman Kemp: 'It's nerve-wracking, we've been waiting for so long to do this. I've been living in a ball of fear. But since the launch I just want people to see it. Can we just show it now?'The One Show presenters then tried to tease out of Johannes what his role will be on the show, which has so far remained somewhat of a mystery.However, he kept the mystery to himself and coyly said: 'What's lovely, is that you won't get to know on the launch. But I say tune in to find out. You have to, it's fun!'. Strictly Come Dancing have released a first look at the new hosts with the judging line-up ahead of the launch show this weekend They also discussed the dance that will take place in the first episode and consist of all of the couples switching partners. Emma explained: 'There's much more movement, they've never done it before. There's 3 groups of 5 and they'll have their own dance. They are paired and it's like speed dancing. They're all learned a routine. The music will start, they will dance, and then they switch. And they do five or so seconds and then 30, and they switch.'Josh added: 'I think we should do it every week, it's so entertaining!'Johannes said after seeing how much work went into the routine he admitted he was glad to no longer be one of the professional dancers. He said: 'I'm so glad i've changed roles, it's a lot of work and it's never been done before.', before backtracking moments later.Emma said she is constantly looking at Johannes when people are dancing to 'check if he looks jealous', as he admitted: 'The fomo (real of missing out) is real!'The presenters will also dance in an ensemble routine, as Emma revealed she had been practicing at home with her husband Matt Willis. She said: 'I like to be thorough, so JoJo had been teaching us, I was going around the supermarket with a trolley, I made made Matt learn it with me. I sent it to JoJo to ask if it was right!' As the photo of Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe with Craig Revel Horwood , Shirley Ballas Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke was revealed, the presenters appeared on The One Show to discuss their nerves before the showFollowing their TV debut, a first look image of Emma, Johannes and Josh was released alongside this year's returning judging panel.Despite claims that head judge Shirley Ballas could be tempted to leave the show and join its US counterpart Dancing With The Stars, the star is proudly alongside her co-stars.This year's celebrity lineup will feature stars including Love Island winner Dani Dyer, EastEnders' Lacey Turney, Gavin and Stacey star Melanie Walters, Australian singer Delta Goodrem, Big Brother host Will Best and Kim Kardashian's hair stylist Chris Appleton, Also joining the celeb cast this year are actress Jaime Winstone, former footballer Shaun Wright-Phillips, Olympians Dame Sarah Storey and Tabby Stoecker, Love Island winner Cach Mercer, House of the Dragon star Bethany Antonia, Graeme 'The Dogfather' Hall, Emmerdale's Lawrence Robb and social media sensation John Nellis. On Saturday, viewers will finally get to see this year's pairings unveiled, as the celebrities which professional dancers they've been partnered with.Already it has been reported that Neil Jones has once again missed out on a celebrity partner, and has been benched for the seventh time after being injured in rehearsals earlier this month.Last month, Strictly became embroiled in a fresh 'fix' row as it's claimed nine of the celebrities have past dance experience.Throughout the years, the BBC dancing show has come under fire for signing up stars who have some form of dancing or performance history, and it appears that this year is no different if new reports are to go by.The Sun reported that with nine out of the 15 celebrities having past experience, 60 per cent of the cast will have an advantage over their fellow competitors.Among those who have dance or performing arts experience, Emmerdale star Lawrence Robb was a former pupil at The Dance School of Scotland for two years.He then went on to the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama before making appearances in the West End.Prior to appearing on Love Island, Cach Mercer worked as a professional dancer with a specialism in Hip-hop and Afrobeats, while Dani Dyer was quoted as calling herself a 'qualified dancer' in her 2019 autobiography.As a child, the fellow Love Island winner attended O’Farrell’s Stage School in east London on weekends for 12 years.Meanwhile, EastEnders star Lacey Turner also had experience in her younger years, attending Sylvia Young Theatre School, while as a child, singer Delta Goodrem had lessons in dancing, singing and acting.Jaime Winstone did a BTEC National Diploma in Performing Arts at Harlow College, Essex, with the course covering dancing, musical theatre and production.Another star with educational experience includes House of the Dragon's Bethany Antonia, who attended the BOA Creative, Digital and Performing Arts Academy in Birmingham where she studied musical theatre.Strictly has gone through a massive shakeup for its 24th series. The show's long-time hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly made the shock announcement they were quitting during last year's series, heralding the start of the overhaul.After months of rumours as to who would replace them, it was finally announced in May that seasoned presenter Emma, comedian Josh and the show's professional dancer Johannes had landed the coveted gig.The show shakeup has also included a focus on social media stars, disappointing loyal fans of the BBC's flagship show, who have criticised the 'weak' line-up, claiming there aren't enough 'household names'.Insiders have revealed the broadcaster has a casting strategy as part of its overhaul and has been deliberate in its targeting of celebrities with big social media followings in a ploy to attract younger viewers to the show.It has been suggested this is to follow a similar, hugely successful social media strategy employed by its US counterpart Dancing With The Stars. Celebrities such as Kim Kardashian's hair stylist Chris Appleton might not be a household name, but he does boast a huge social media following with 4million fans on Instagram.Sports YouTuber John Nellis has an even bigger fanbase, with 15.7million YouTube subscribers.Dancing With The Stars has used their celebrity contestants' followings to their advantage, introducing a TikTok Night last year – an episode which saw the contestants perform viral dance routines, sparking an uptick in interaction from younger viewers.The Dancing With The Stars TikTok account now has more than 5million followers, in comparison to Strictly's 670,000.And even before this year's Strictly line-up was announced, the professional dancers fell victim to the same strategy. In recent months popular dancers Nadiya Bychkova, Karen Hauer, Michelle Tsiakkas, Luba Mushtuk and Gorka Marquez have all been given the boot.It's understood pros with bigger online followings have been chosen over dancers who are not so TikTok friendly as the series tries desperately to attract a younger audience. Strictly Come Dancing kicks off on Saturday, September 19th at 7:25pm on BBC OneOne example appears to be axed Bychkova, who has 214,000 Insta followers, while Dianne Buswell, with 1.2million Instagram followers and 973,000 on TikTok, has kept her place in the line-up.Meanwhile five new young pros have been recruited with ballroom champ Maddie Ingoldsby boasting 364,000 TikTok followers. The trio of new hosts also have a strong online presence. Comedian Josh Widdicombe has more than half a million Instagram followers on his personal account whilst the Insta page for his hugely popular podcast Parenting Hell has 250,000.Emma Willis has 2million Instagram followers and fan-favourite dancer Johannes Radebe, who will act as a co-presenter this year, has 458,000 followers. The insider has explained that the BBC struggles to attract big-name celebrities these days, because the landscape has changed.The source told The Sun: 'Crucially the pipeline that used to feed these big shows has changed.'Boyband and girlband stars aren't as prevalent any more and, once upon a time, getting someone from a soap or a big drama was a massive deal, but now even that has diminished somewhat.'Now, though, social media is continuing to boom and big stars from the world of TikTok, YouTube and Instagram are known to a vast section of society.'Strictly Come Dancing kicks off on Saturday, September 19th at 7:25pm on BBC One. STRICTLY COME DANCING 2026: MEET THE CONTESTANTS LACEY TURNER AGE: 38BEST KNOWN FOR?: Playing Stacey Slater on BBC's EastEnders WHY STRICTLY?: 'I'm so excited and terrified at the same time but I've had so many friends do Strictly and I thought it was about time that I plunked up the courage and made my way onto that dance floor.'DELTA GOODREMAGE: 41BEST KNOWN FOR?: Played Nina Tucker in Neighbours and has released eight music albumsWHY STRICTLY?: 'I’ve been incredibly honoured to perform on many different stages throughout my career - from tv, theatre, film sets, to touring my own shows around the world, there is however one stage I’ve never stepped onto and that is the ballroom floor!'CACH MERCERAGE: 25BEST KNOWN FOR?: Won Love Island 2025 and is a TikTok influencerWHY STRICTLY?: 'I have grown up watching the show with my family and am so excited to now be part of the cast. Dancing is a huge passion of mine and I can’t wait to learn Ballroom and do the Foxtrot for the first time!'DAME SARAH STOREYAGE: 48BEST KNOWN FOR?: Britain's most successful Paralympian WHY STRICTLY?: 'Embarking on a new challenge so soon after stepping down as an athlete is hugely exciting.'BETHANY ANTONIA AGE: 28BEST KNOWN FOR?: Plays Lady Baela Targaryen in House of the DragonWHY STRICTLY?: 'I have grown up watching Strictly, and I am so excited to take the challenge on and (hopefully!) learn a new skill.'GRAEME 'THE DOGFATHER' HALLAGE: 59BEST KNOWN FOR?: Hosts Channel 5 series Dogs Behaving (Very) BadlyWHY STRICTLY?: 'I have watched the show for years, so to be a part of it feels like a very exciting challenge, albeit more than a bit nerve-wracking!'TABBY STOECKER AGE: 25BEST KNOWN FOR?: Olympic champion skeleton racerWHY STRICTLY?: 'I’ve had the wildest year of my life so far, so to be rounding it off with a childhood dream of dancing in the Strictly ballroom is surreal and I can’t wait to get stuck in!'MELANIE WALTERS AGE: 64BEST KNOWN FOR?: Playing Gwen West in BBC sitcom Gavin & StaceyWHY STRICTLY?: 'Performing in Pantomime for the last 15 years, my Strictly ‘fix’ has always been watching in a dressing room rather than my front room.' DANI DYERAGE: 30BEST KNOWN FOR?: Winning Love Island and being the daughter of actor Danny DyerWHY STRICTLY?: 'I am so excited to be back in the ballroom this September! I just cannot wait to get my dancing shoes back on and hopefully this time around I can actually make it to week one!'CHRIS APPLETONAGE: 43BEST KNOWN FOR?: Hairdresser to the stars - including Kim Kardashian and Jennifer LopezWHY STRICTLY?: 'I’m thrilled to be joining Strictly and coming home to the UK for this incredible experience. I’ve always believed that the best things happen when you take a chance and try something new.'WILL BESTAGE: 41BEST KNOWN FOR?: Hosts Big Brother and previously TVWHY STRICTLY?: 'I’ve been lucky to do lots of live telly before, but absolutely nothing like this. And I cannot wait!'JAIME WINSTONEAGE: 41BEST KNOWN FOR?: Starring in films such as Kidulthood and Tomb RaiderWHY STRICTLY?: 'I am no stranger to a dance floor, but the ballroom is a whole new world for me.'SHAUN WRIGHT-PHILLIPS AGE: 44BEST KNOWN FOR?: Footballer who played for the likes of Chelsea and Manchester CityWHY STRICTLY?: 'Strictly is definitely outside my comfort zone, but I’m super excited to get started and really looking forward to the challenge!'LAWRENCE ROBBAGE: 34BEST KNOWN FOR?: Plays Mackenzie Boyd on ITV's EmmerdaleWHY STRICTLY?: 'I can't quite believe that I am going to be getting my dancing shoes on this September on one of my favourite shows of all time!'JOHN NELLIS AGE: 33BEST KNOWN FOR?: Face of a popular football-focused YouTube channelWHY STRICTLY?: 'I can't wait to meet everyone, learn a new skill and, hopefully, be much better at family parties by the end of it!'