There's nothing that Strictly fans love more than complaining about Strictly. Whether it’s the judges and their haywire scoring or, in the case of the revamped series this autumn, the presenters, Strictly is consistently picked apart for changing too much or refusing to change. As the person often doing the moaning, I know that this criticism (usually) comes from a place of love for the show. Ultimately, it’s short-lived too, and is usually quickly eclipsed by a magnificent dance or a brilliant viral moment.
Still, it's clear that something is off with Strictly 2026, and I don't think this can be blamed on the new trio of presenters’ wobbly start. It’s not Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman that the show is missing, but a type of contestant that viewers historically love to hate. I’m talking about the celebrities who enter the competition with some dance experience and are beloved by the judges, if not the viewing public. Without them, Strictly is lacking a basic thing: really spectacular dancing.
That’s not to say that there aren’t talented underdogs within the class of 2026, or even contestants with dance backgrounds. Before the show officially launched, Wikipedia pages – and, in the case of Emmerdale star Lawrence Robb, acting CVs – were combed for any reference of dance experience that would be marked as an unfair advantage and held against these stars. Robb was pulled out as a likely ringer (a sports term co-opted by Strictly fans), along with Love Island star Cach Mercer, Aussie pop favourite Delta Goodrem, and even dog trainer Graeme Hall.
Yet for all their potential, these celebrities have failed to lead the pack as many thought they would, and have therefore left the show with a real talent gap at the top. Arguably hampered from day one by an almighty height difference between him and his pro Jowita Przystał, Robb made it just six weeks before getting the chop. Hall, meanwhile, who used to compete in amateur ballroom dancing competitions, has plateaued. This weekend’s emotive couples choice routine, inspired by the stroke Hall suffered in 2019, should have been a breakthrough moment and obvious point scorer. But it felt fairly flat; even the judges couldn’t get excited by the performance, which left Hall second bottom of the leaderboard.
With a background in street and Afrobeat dancing, Mercer was also posited as an obvious ringer on Strictly 2026. But bar a few flashes of brilliance, his potential remains frustratingly untapped, with the judges repeatedly chastising his partner, new pro Maddie Ingoldsby, for failing to teach him the basics of each dance style. With three ringers not actually performing as ringers, the carefully balanced series starts to tilt in the wrong direction.
And then there’s Goodrem who, in all fairness, initially flew high above the rest of this year's Strictly stars and labelled herself this series’ heir apparent. But since suffering a fractured rib in week four rehearsals, Goodrem has been left, quite literally, on the backfoot. There’s a cautiousness present, and an upper ceiling placed on what she can do in terms of acrobatic lifts for fear of further injury. This Saturday’s cha-cha showed that fast numbers aren’t out of reach for her (I suspect even a broken leg couldn’t stop Goodrem’s lightning-quick footwork), but this physical limitation is preventing her from being as good as she could be.
Goodrem is still the strongest dancer in the competition, with the odds appearing to suggest an all-female final between her and the women who’ve had more of a "journey" (Tabby Stoecker, Dani Dyer, Lacey Turner). Goodrem won’t win, and in that sense, follows the trend set by previous ringers, even if she cannot physically reach their level. It plays out every year. The public do not take to these “experienced” celebrities, meaning the best dancers in the competition repeatedly find themselves in the bottom two and hobble to the final feeling understandably deflated.
Think of Love Island star Amber Davies in 2025, who called out the public for not “wanting to warm to” her; X Factor winner Alexandra Burke in 2017, who was forced to defend herself after viewers called her “fake”; or actor Layton Williams in 2023. All three had performed in musical theatre (as many actors have) before being cast on Strictly, where they would go on to perform the best numbers of the season.
While viewers are complaining about ringers, they forget that it’s these people – with, yes, previous dance experience – who set the gold standard each Strictly season. They might not win, but they achieve something arguably better: Strictly infamy. From Ashley Roberts’ Blackpool jive to Faye Tozer’s Charleston to “The Lonely Goatherd”, Jay McGuinness’s ultra slick Pulp Fiction number and Danny Mac’s samba, the dances that stick in Strictly fans’ brains, and are constantly referenced by viewers and the judges alike, are done by ringers.
That only one of these performers went on to win the show (The Wanted singer McGuinness) proves that ringers matter not because they lift the glitterball trophy, but simply by being there and raising the bar. Without them, or with contestants failing to meet their standard, Strictly loses those eye-widening numbers that will populate future “best dance” compilation videos. Lacking these moments, Strictly has never felt more boring. What’s left? Some likeable, good enough dancers, and a whole load of middling meh.
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