Is this the most obscure Strictly line-up ever?
CRAIG Revel Horwood has admitted he sometimes has to look up Strictly Come Dancing contestants online to discover who they are.
But this year the acerbic judge may find that even Google is not much help.
For many of the 15 competitors are so little-known to all but their most ardent fans that their Wikipedia entries are somewhat brief.
The line-up, completed yesterday with the addition of Casualty actor Charles Venn and fashion guru Susannah Constantine, includes YouTube video blogger Joe Sugg, Capital FM breakfast show presenter Vick Hope and comedian Seann Walsh.
Previous years included personalities such as Jason Donovan, Carol Vorderman, Victoria Pendleton, Ed Balls and Judy Murray, who most of the audience were familiar with.
Only two of this year’s contestants are TV actors – Venn, who has also appeared in EastEnders, and Danny John-Jules, star of Red Dwarf. Lee Ryan has appeared in EastEnders but is more familiar as a member of boy band Blue and is probably the most famous ‘celebrity’ taking part.
Yesterday Strictly fans criticised the BBC for a line-up lacking in household names. Entertainment expert David Hahn, of Celeb Agents, said he had ‘seen better FBI wanted lists’ and was baffled by most of the choices.
‘Who’s this YouTuber? Strictly’s audience is not made up of YouTube fans,’ he said.
‘I just find it really bizarre that they’re putting in YouTube vloggers that are supposed to be celebrities. It’s becoming like a freak show. It’s lost its way. There are so many good names out there they could ask – where are the politicians?’
There have been claims that some big stars may have been put off taking part by the ‘Strictly curse’, which has seen the relationships or marriages of contestants – including Ben Cohen, Louise Redknapp and Rachel Riley – fall apart.
But head judge Shirley Ballas insisted: ‘The full line-up has now been announced and I have to say I think it’s marvellous. I think everybody is in for a real treat, it’s a very diverse group and I’m so excited to get going and I’m sure the audience is excited to be watching, so this season is definitely one to tune into.’
A BBC spokesman said: ‘Every year we create fresh and interesting lineups with our celebrities and this year is no exception. We’re really excited about how dynamic the group is.’
Revel Horwood admitted last year: ‘At the start of each season, we only find out who the celebs are an hour before the information is released to the Press, and then I have to Google the names quick-smart because I don’t know who they are.’