Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special 2025 line-up

Strictly has revealed the line-up for this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special.

This year’s Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special will see six couples battle it out under the glitterball to be crowned the Strictly Christmas Champion.

Hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman will oversee the festivities for their final time, while Head Judge Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke will all be on hand to dish out sleigh-loads of advice, Christmas cheer and the odd lump of coal - before the voting studio audience will decide who wins.

Expect a winter wonderland full of festive magic, dazzling group dances, live music and more in what will be the perfect antidote to the post-Christmas Dinner slump.

Here's who will be taking part...

Scarlett Moffatt

Presenter and TV Personality

Scarlett Moffatt is the first celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. She revealed the news in a surprise, out-of-the-blue announcement live on Strictly: It Takes Two, where she was appearing as a guest on the show’s Friday Panel.

Scarlett will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Vito Coppola when she enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

Scarlett is a presenter and TV personality who first rose to fame alongside her family on Gogglebox before going on to win I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! in 2016. As a presenter, her work includes six series of the BBC Sounds podcast Scarlett Moffatt Wants To Believe, alongside Streetmate, the Channel 4 documentary Britain’s Tourette’s Mystery: Scarlett Moffatt Investigates, and 30 episodes of the cookery show Love Bites.

Other television work includes multiple series of Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, I’m A Celebrity: Extra Camp, and the panel show Celebability, plus Crufts Extra and Scarlett Moffatt’s Driving School.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Scarlett Moffatt said "Strictly has always held a special place in my heart, so being part of the Christmas Special feels truly magical. It’s the show that brings everyone together around the TV, and being part of that is a genuine personal and career highlight. I’m sure it’ll also introduce me to a few muscles I didn’t know I had. I can’t wait to live my best life on that dancefloor."

Melanie Blatt

Singer and Cook

Melanie Blatt is the second celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. She will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Kai Widdrington when she enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

Melanie is a singer and cook, who rose to international fame in the 1990s as a member of the multi-platinum-selling, award-winning All Saints. As part of the band, Melanie had five UK number one hit singles and won two BRIT awards, selling over 10 million albums worldwide.

In recent years Melanie has founded her own gourmet burger business and has appeared on television as a finalist in Celebrity Masterchef, in the second series of Celebrity Race Across The World, on Taskmaster’s New Year Treat, and as a contributor in the documentary series Girlbands Forever.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Melanie Blatt said "If you can't have a dance at Christmas, when can you?! I'm so excited to meet Kai and start training to make this a dance to remember."

Jodie Ounsley

Rugby Player and Gladiator

Jodie Ounsley, aka Fury from Gladiators, is the third celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. She will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Neil Jones when she enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

Jodie is a rugby player, athlete, broadcaster, and advocate for the deaf community who has been breaking boundaries from the very start. Profoundly deaf from infancy, she received a cochlear implant as a child, becoming one of the youngest people in the UK to undergo the procedure.

Jodie’s rugby career has seen her play professionally for Loughborough Lightning, Sale Sharks Women, and Exeter Chiefs Women, before announcing her retirement in April 2024. In 2019, she made sporting history as the first deaf female to play for a senior England rugby side, and the world’s first deaf female international rugby sevens player.

Away from rugby, Jodie is a British Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion and multiple-time World Coal Carrying Champion, a discipline which earned her a Guinness World Record this year, for completing the fastest 50m sprint while carrying a 20kg coal bag.

Jodie has also turned her talents to broadcasting, working as an interviewer for the BBC at the Women’s 2024 Rugby World Cup, as well as on Channel 4’s coverage of last year's Paralympic Games. Jodie is also a published author, having co-written two books with Becky Grey and in 2024, she joined the rebooted BBC series Gladiators as ‘Fury’, quickly becoming a fan favourite.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Jodie Ounsley said "I’m absolutely buzzing to be doing the Strictly Christmas Special. Being the first female rugby player means a lot to me too. I honestly can’t wait to get stuck in, I’m used to smashing into people so this is definitely going to be a challenge!"

Nicholas Bailey

EastEnders Actor

EastEnders actor Nicholas Bailey is the fourth celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. He will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Luba Mushtuk when he enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

Known to millions for his role as Dr Anthony Trueman in EastEnders, Nicholas first arrived on the square 25 years ago, where he was a Walford regular until 2003. After guest appearances over the years, Nicholas returned to EastEnders earlier this year.

With an acting career spanning more than thirty years, Nicholas has starred in further iconic series including Death in Paradise, Casualty, The Archers, Coronation Street and Miranda. His theatre work has seen him perform extensively on stage across the UK and in the West End, where his credits include Dreamgirls and Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Nicholas Bailey said "I’m really excited to be doing this, almost as excited as my wife and daughters are! Hopefully I’ll do them, Albert Square and Luba proud. Bring on the dancefloor."

Babatunde Aléshé

Stand-up Comedian, Actor and Podcaster

Stand-up comedian, actor and podcaster Babatunde Aléshé is the fifth celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. She will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Nancy Xu when he enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

As a stand-up, he has toured extensively, with his latest headline tour of the UK concluding this week ahead of international dates in 2026. Babatunde has regularly appeared on TV in shows including Taskmaster, where he was part of the series 18 cast and on Celebrity Gogglebox, sharing the sofa with Mo Gilligan.

In 2022, Babatunde took part in I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!, lasting 18 days in the jungle, and won a Gold ARIAS award for his podcast series Mission Imagination. Other TV appearances over the years include Live at the Apollo, Would I Lie To You? and Richard Osman's House of Games.

Babatunde co-hosted the 2024 MOBO Awards and was Head Judge at the 2024 BBC New Comedy Awards. As an actor, his work includes roles in Christmas Karma, Sumotherhood, and Doctor Who. He recently launched the new podcast, Man Like You, with Mo Gilligan and Eddie Kadi.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Babatunde Aléshé said "I used to do a little dancing when I was in college. I used to do Street Locking and Break Dancing, but then I found comedy and pursued that instead. At 39 I’ve accepted that a good two-step is all I need to get by at any function, but I know that won't be enough for Strictly! Let's hope the old moves come back to me in time for Christmas."

Brian McFadden

Singer-Songwriter

Brian McFadden is the sixth and final celebrity announced to take part in this year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. She will be paired with Strictly Come Dancing Professional Dancer Michelle Tsiakkas when he enters the Strictly Christmas ballroom this December.

Brian McFadden is an Irish singer-songwriter who first rose to fame as a member of Westlife, achieving twelve number one singles, including Flying Without Wings and World of Our Own.

Brian later topped the charts as a solo artist and went on to release four solo albums. In recent years, Brian has released two albums and toured extensively as part of Boyzlife, his collaboration with Keith Duffy.

Brian's television work includes judging Australia's Got Talent, guest judging Australian Idol, and presenting Football Superstar and 90 episodes of Who's Doing The Dishes? for ITV.

On taking part in this year's Strictly Christmas special, Brian McFadden said "I’m delighted to be a part of the Strictly Christmas special. We are big fans of Strictly in our house so to be dancing on Christmas Day on such a magical show will make it a Christmas to remember.”

Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special returns Christmas Day on BBC One