Strictly has reportledy been hit with yet another blow after it’s first live episode of the latest series saw ratings plummet to it’s lowest in the show’s 20-year history.
Following last week’s pre-recorded launch, The Sun reported that Saturday’s episode saw a peak of 6.7M viewers, down from 7.3M for the same episode last year and 10.2M in 2020.
The show has found itself embroiled in controversy over how the professional dancers teach the celebs, with multiple accusations emerging of bullying and abusive behaviour.
All fifteen celebrities and their pro partners took to the dancefloor for the first live show following last weekend’s launch, where the pairings were first revealed.
A source told the publication that after bosses were fretting after already being ‘worried’ following the pre-recorded show losing nearly a million viewers on the previous year.
Saying: ‘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.’
MailOnline have contacted BBC for comment.
The Strictly scandal erupted in January when actress Amanda Abbington accused her Strictly partner Giovanni Pernice of abuse after she unexpectedly quit the show just five weeks in.
Sherlock actress Amanda, 50, a has made a series of accusations about Giovanni’s teaching methods and has described his behaviour as ‘unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean’. He strongly denies all of the claims.
Then, in July, it emerged that Graziano Di Prima had been sacked from Strictly for ‘kicking’ his partner, Love Island star Zara McDermott.
On Saturday judge Shirley Ballas apologised after shocking audiences by kissing fellow judge Motsi Mabuse during the first live show on Saturday night.
The dancing expert, 64, was giving advice to Olympic swimmer Tom Dean and his dance partner Nadiya Bychkova about their tango performance when she gave an impromptu demonstration.
Shirley explained that the style was ‘all in the posture’ as she asked Motsi to help her illustrate the point.
Anton Du Beke encouraged them as she shouted ‘go on girls’ – just as Shirley moved her head a certain way and accidentally locked lips with Motsi.
Breaking her silence on the moment on Instagram on Sunday morning after the show Shirley joked: ‘Sorry @motsimabuse you moved your head too soon! @bbcstrictly what did you think of last night’s show?’
Strictly returned for its 20th series as it shrugged off the bullying scandal with fan favourites Amy Dowden and Aljaz Škorjanec making their return.
The BBC dancing show has been through a tough year after numerous previous contestants alleged abuse by professional dancers.
Fans were delighted as Amy returned to the dancefloor for a stunning Waltz with her partner, JLS star JB.
Meanwhile Aljaz performed an equally incredible routine with his partner Tasha Ghouri, as they stunned the judges with an upbeat Cha Cha.
Surprisingly, one star spotted in the audience was Zara – who was at the heart of the scandal – as she turned up for the show to support her pal Pete Wicks.
Amy, 34, made a glorious comeback and told host Claudia ‘I’m so happy I could burst’ after scoring an impressive 31 points on the dancefloor.
The fan favourite performed a moving Waltz to When I Need You by Leo Sayer, leaving both judges and fans emotional.
Overnight ratings for last week’s show revealed that 5.5 million viewers tuned in to see a string of celebrities paired up with professional dancers compared to 6.2 million in 2023.
The BBC dodged any mention of the show’s string of scandals during its launch episode.
Hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly excitedly introduced this year’s celebrities and announced which dancers they would be paired with – but the controversies of the last year went unmentioned.
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Source: The Wall Street Journal
