Strictly Come Dancing stars face abuse from fans after welcoming contestant to show

The latest Strictly Come Dancingcontestant announcement has already caused controversy. In a show that has been hit be scandals lately, a number of viewers were less than impressed by the revelation that former The Apprentice star Thomas Skinner will be taking part in the upcoming BBC series.

And now, after fellow stars of the show welcomed the reality TV businessman to the show, fans have slammed their actions. A number of dancers responded to the official announcement on Instagram.

Among them was Amy Dowden. The professional dancer, who could end up pairing with Tom, simply wrote: "Welcome," alongside a pink love heart emoji and a bow. "Don't see this as a good thing for strictly," one user responded alongside a sad face and nauseous face emoji.

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Shirley Ballas also faced backlash after saying "welcome" to the star. One user berated: "It’s very sad to see the dancers who we’ve followed and loved supporting far right politics - I guess strictly is a pretty big pay packet."

Another added: "no Shirley. Disappointing from you and @bbcstrictly." And a third responded to her: "You've worked with lgbtq+ people your whole life, and you support this??? Disgusting."

Fans told Gorka Marquez "not you too" as he also praised the announcement. One user fumed: "your [sic] an embarrassment supporting him," after the pro dancer shared three clapping hands emojis.

The comments come after fans urged the organisation to reconsiderthe star's participation. Ahead of the September star date, fans hit out due to Tom's sharing of of his controversial views posted on social media.

Also known for his candid videos on social media platform Twitter/X, his posts about business, politics, and everyday life have garnered hundreds of thousands of followers. His social media presence has since sparked an extraordinary friendship with US Vice President JD Vance, Donald Trump's running mate.

His announcement comes as the BBC continues to spread out their announcements. Others so far revealed to be taking to the dance floor include Olympic sprinter and Gladiators star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, who was the first contestant confirmed for the 2025 line-up on Monday.

Love Island winner Dani Dyer was the second celebrity confirmed for the new series, with Alex Kingston and Jimmy Floyd Hassebaink quickly following.

Actress Balvinder Sopal was then the fifth contestant to be revealed as part of the line-up, before TikTok sensation George Clarke was announced. RuPaul's Drag Race UK runner-up La Voix, also known as Christopher Dennis, was unveiled as the seventh celebrity, with actress and model Ellie Goldstein, and rugby star Chris Robshaw also confirmed to be taking part.

Further announcements followed for Geordie Shore's Vicky Pattison and Neighbours star Stefan Dennis.

The stars will put on a show on the small screen next month, with the start date revealed on BBC Breakfast. s Jon Kay confirmed live on BBC Breakfast: "Strictly starts on the 20th September.

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