Strictly Come Dancing comes to Birmingham for first leg of UK Live Tour

They're performing 5 shows until Sunday.

Author: Katie JonesPublished 19th Jan 2024
Last updated 19th Jan 2024

The Strictly Come Dancing Live tour kicks off tonight in Birmingham for the first leg of 30 shows being performed around the UK.

They're starting with five shows at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham. One Friday night, and two on Saturday and Sunday.

The tour will continue around the country until February 11th where it will finish at the O2 in London.

It's after Coronation Street actress Ellie Leach won the last series of the competition.

She'll be joined on the tour by other stars including presenters Annabel Croft and Angela Scanlon, actor and singer Layton Williams, broadcasters Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Angela Rippon, and model Bobby Braiser.

They'll be coupled with Strictly professionals - Dianne Buswell, Graziano Di Prima, Jowita Przystal, Vito Coppola, Kai Widdrington, Carlos Gu, and Nikita Kuzmin.

The couples will be joined on tour by professional dancers Nadiya Bychkova, Karen Hauer, Katya Jones, Neil Jones, Robbie Kmetoni, Jake Leigh and Nancy Xu, bringing with them even more glitz and glamour to this supersized live show.

Strictly TV judges Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Craig Revel Horwood are also returning to their judging seats and tour host, BBC Two's Strictly - It Takes Two's Janette Manrara.

After the tour opens in Birmingham the the glitz, the glamour and the sequins - together with the all-important celebrity contestants and their professional dancer partners - will travel to some of the UK's biggest entertainment venues leaving a trail of glitter in their wake.

Strictly's Live Tour celebrates all the joy of the TV series, showcasing the amazing choreography and fantastic live music that Strictly is synonymous with - providing audiences of all ages up and down the country the opportunity to experience everything they love about the TV show live on stage in their hometown or city.

Not only are the arena audiences treated to the spectacular roof-raising routines, but they are also granted the power to decide who wins the coveted Glitterball Trophy at the end of each show.

The tour judges will provide their invaluable wisdom, advice, and scores at each performance - we couldn't stop them if we tried - but the ultimate power lies with the audience. A text for their favourite couple is all it takes; their votes will decide who wins.

As with the 2023 tour, each performance will host a British Sign Language interpreter, who will be displayed on two large screens on either side of the stage so that audiences can book tickets and sit almost anywhere in the arena to enjoy the experience with family and friends.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.