It’s happening again, the BBC’s dancing competition is back and we’re following every second of it. Tonight’s live show is guest blogged by Stuart Heritage, Heidi Stephens will be back next week
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Here's the full line-up of Strictly Come Dancing celebrities who will be taking part in tonight's launch show.
Fifteen celebrities are set to sizzle in their sequins as they lash on the fake tan, blinding teeth whitener and an extreme dancing grin.
Last year saw Joe McFadden lift the trophy with his partner Katya Jones, with runners up Gemma Atkinson , Alexandra Burke and Debbie McGee winning over the nation.
And this winter sees the usual delightful mix of telly stars, athletes and noughties pop stars - but just who will take home the beloved Glitterball Trophy?
Who is in Strictly this year?
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Mum of three Susannah was the final Strictly star confirmed.
The telly star said: “I hope to prove pigs can fly (dance). Sick with nerves and jangling with excitement.”
Susannah, 56, is a television presenter, fashion journalist, style advisor, author and designer.
Susannah began her career working in fashion for Giorgio Armani and John Galliano before she met Trinny Woodall in 1994, with whom she proceeded to write a weekly fashion column for the Daily Telegraph which ran for seven years.
The pair went on to co-host the hugely successful BBC One show ‘What Not to Wear’ from 2001 to 2005 and then moved to ITV to make Trinny & Susannah Undress, and Undress the Nation, they also frequently appeared as makeover stylists on The Oprah Winfrey show.
It is estimated that Trinny & Susannah’s various style advice books have sold in excess of 2.5 million copies in Britain and the United States.
Susannah's debut novel, After the Snow, was published to great acclaim last year and the paperback is out this autumn, she is currently writing the sequel which is due out in 2019.
Susannah has been paired with Anton du Beke.
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Former EastEnders star Charles Venn was the fourteenth celebrity confirmed for the brand new series of Strictly Come Dancing .
Charles, who played Kim Fox' love interest Ray Dixon in EastEnders, said he was thrilled to don his dancing shoes.
The 45-year-old said: “It truly is a pleasure to be a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing, to be associated with a show that has such a huge following excites and scares me in equal measure!
"Dancing on Strictly is going to be quite a challenge but life’s all about testing yourself so there’s lots to look forward to, let the games begin..!”
Dad of two Charles also played nurse Jacob Masters in Casualty and Tremaine Gidigbi in Footballers’ Wives. The news was revealed this morning on ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
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Paralympian Lauren Steadman has become the 13th celebrity to be announced.
Lauren is a double World Champian Paratriathlete, Paralympic Silver medallist and six times European Champion.
The Paralympian was born without her lower right arm, but she relishes in overcoming these barriers and started her sporting career in swimming at age 11.
She took part in her first international competition when she was 13 and at 14, she went to the Beijing Paralympic Games, switching from swimming to triathlon after London 2012.
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Blue singer Lee Ryan was unveiled on Loose Women as one of the contestants for Strictly.
Panelists Jane Moore and Stacey Solomon helped him walk down the aisle in the studio while he wore a sparkling helmet to conceal his identity.
After much teasing of the secret, Lee removed his disguise. He confessed to the ladies that he used to run out of dance lessons at performing arts school, so he'll be facing his fears taking part in the show.
He's already had some training though from bandmate Simon Webbe, who took part in Strictly in 2014.
Seann Walsh
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Comedian Sean, 32, is excited to be taking part - but is more than a bit scared.
He said: "Having seen videos of me dancing on friends’ phones from the night before, it’s safe to say I’m petrified but also so excited.
"I’m really looking forward to the lifts, the Lycra and the laughs, although as Craig would probably say 'dancing is no laughing matter dahhhhling…’”
Kate Silverton
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News broadcaster Kate Silverton, a familiar face on BBC News, has signed up for the BBC dancing competition.
Bosses have been trying for years to recruit the mum-of-two, 48, who is big fan of the show.
An insider told The Sun: “Kate has been at the top of the producers' wish list for more than a decade.
“But she has always put her career and family above everything.
"Now she’s polishing off her dancing shoes and can’t wait to get started."
Kate has been paired with Aljaz Škorjanec.
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Former Pussycat Doll Ashley was the ninth celeb confirmed for the show.
A source told the Mirror: “Ashley is already a hot favourite because of her dance experience with the Dolls as well as having trained as a dancer.
"Although she might not have done much ballroom or Latin, being able to pick up choreography quickly as well as her rhythm is sure to give her an edge.”
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The eighth celebrity to be confirmed was Stacey Dooley.
The documentary presenter, 31, said she was delighted to take part and joked her mum was going to 'explode' in excitement.
Stacey is one of the most celebrated documentary presenters on the BBC.
She found fame in 2008 when she was flown to developing countries along with other young Brits to investigate working conditions in factories for Blood, Sweet And T-Shirts.
The then-21-year-old star impressed TV bosses so much she was offered her own BBC3 series Stacey Dooley Investigates in 2009.
For the series, Stacey has interviewed criminals, child soldiers, drug dealers and prostitutes in far-flung locations such as Kenya, Congo, Cambodia and Mexico.
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Famous for sharing his medical advice on the ITV sofa and singing to children about illness on CBeebies, the doctor will be swapping his stethoscope for the sequins.
He is hoping to get pulses racing as he follows in the footsteps of This Morning Ruth Langsford onto the Saturday night show.
An insider told the Mirror: “He’s a housewives’ favourite on ITV daytime so he’s sure to have big support when he takes to the dancefloor.”
Graeme Swann
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Graeme Swann is the latest cricket star to don his dancing shoes in a bid to win the glitterball.
The England cricketer, 39, will follow in the footsteps of Mark Ramprakash, who won Strictly in 2006, and Darren Gough of the 2005 series.
Aside from his success on the pitch, Graeme is known for his antics off-field.
In 2011 he was cleared of drink-driving after getting stopped by police on his way to a supermarket the previous year.
He told them he was on his way to a 24-hour supermarket to buy screwdrivers - as his cat was stuck under his floorboards.
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DJ Vick Hope announced her time on Strictly during her Capital radio show on August 15.
The glam DJ won't be hit by the Strictly curse as she dumped her long-term boyfriend just before signing up for the hit celebrity dance show.
The Sunday Mirror revealed Vick waltzed off from ex Tom Rosenthal, star of series Plebs, blaming a “quarter life crisis” for the change of heart.
She’s also admitted to being at a crossroads about her career, and yearned for a job where she could learn something new every day - with Strictly Come Dancing fitting the bill exactly.
Vick has been paired with new dancer Graziano Di Prima.
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YouTube sensation Joe is the fourth star confirmed for the line-up.
The 26-year-old social media star goes by the name ThatcherJoe on his YouTube channels and is the younger brother of millionaire YouTuber Zoe Sugg - who goes by Zoella.
Zoella and her boyfriend, YouTube star Alfie Deyes, are also apparently set to attend the show "every week" to support her brother.
Joe has more than 25million subscribers across his channels - giving him plenty of welly when it comes to the Strictly voting process.
"My knowledge of dance isn't the best, so I'm just going to go into it completely open minded," he admitted ahead of the launch.
And as for his impending Strictly makeover? "I do feel pretty nervous about it. I just hope they have child sizes as I'm tiny!"
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Red Dwarf star Danny will be donning his dancing shoes for the BBC competition this year.
Speaking ahead of his appearance on the show, Danny said: "Having spent the last few months on two wheels motorcycling around South America in pink leathers, I’m absolutely delighted to be getting back on two feet and into something more comfortable like glittery spandex."
Danny, 57, is best known for playing Cat in sci-fi comedy series Red Dwarf, however has starred in a number of other BBC series including Death In Paradise and CBBC's M.I. High.
He also has 25 years’ experience in dance and starred in Starlight Express.
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Steps singer Faye has signed up this year, and sources say she'll be a real contender
Faye is no stranger to the West End having starred in many theatrical productions - including an Andrew Lloyd Webber produced one-woman musical.
Faye, 42, has been married to second husband Michael Smith for nine years.
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Bandmate Claire Richards, 40, dismissed any chances of falling for the Strictly curse, telling the Sunday People: “Oh God, everybody talks about things like that all the time.
"I was at her wedding and she is very happily married. She will be amazing on it.”
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Katie has been confirmed as the first contestant to feature in the 2018 series. Sharing the news on BBC Breakfast on August 13, she said, "Thank you so much, it's been so hard to keep it secret!"
"The only person I told is my husband through text message and he thought I was joking!" she revealed, admitting she's worried about her last of natural rhythm.
"I already know how much of an amazing experience it will be for me and I can't wait to show my girls some of my new dance moves," the mother-of-two said.
"I'm nervous to put on my dancing shoes but can't wait to learn a new skill and have the Strictly tan and makeover!"
When is Strictly returning?
Strictly Come Dancing launches tonight - Saturday September 8 at at 7.35pm on BBC1 - which is when we'll find out which celebrities are dancing with which professionals.
It won't be a live show, however - it was filmed on Friday 31 August and the pairings have been kept a tight secret ahead of the launch.
Since it was filmed, all the famous faces have been given a week's head-start to get practising their rumba and get layer upon layer of fake tan applied to their skin.
The first live show is expected to start on Saturday September 22, once the stars have had a few weeks' training under their rhinestone belts.
Lauren, 25, has completed three Paralympics - two in swimming and one as a Paratriathlon at the 2016 Games in Rio where she won a silver medal. The 13th contestant to be announced for this year’s show was born without a full right arm and says she has no intention of using her prosthetic limb for the show. She joked: “I don’t think I will use my prosthetic. I think maybe with a spin it might fly off somewhere.” FULL LINE UP HERE
Is Lauren Steadman married? Who is she dating? Lauren Steadman, 25, is a British Paralympic athlete who specialises in Paratriathlons and is a double World Champion and six-time European Champion. But aside from her incredible sporting success, little is known about Lauren’s love interests and she appears to be enjoying the single life right now. She shares regular snaps of her family, friends and dog on Instagram but there does not seem to be a significant other mentioned.
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Lauren Steadman takes to the dance floor tonight
Can Lauren dance? When announced as the 13th contestant for the BBC hit show, the 25-year-old joked she may have to pull out “dad dancing” as part of her Strictly moves but admitted she had tried a bit of salsa before. Lauren later revealed she may well be a hot contender for the Strictly competition as she not only dances salsa - but can teach it too. Speaking in May 2017, she said: “I like to dance salsa – I’ve been doing it for about four years and I teach now as well.” “I got into it because my psychologist said that sport is no longer your hobby it’s your career, so you need something outside of that to enjoy.”
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Lauren Steadman and Danny John-Jules at the launch party
What are Lauren’s sporting achievements? Lauren began her professional life as a swimmer, having discovered a passion for the pool just aged four and competing for Team GB at her first Paralympic Games at the age of 15. This was followed by an appearance at the 2012 Summer Paralympics. The young sportswoman switched sports after her uncle, a triathlete, suggested she give Paratriathlons a try. The multi-talented athlete won a gold medal in 4 x 100 m freestyle relay at the Paralympic World Championships in 2009.
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Lauren in the heats of the Women's 400m Freestyle at London 2012
Long before Strictly Come Dancing 2018, Faye Tozer made up one fifth of pop group Steps alongside Lee Latchford-Evans, Lisa Scott-Lee and Ian "H" Watkins as well as Claire Richards. The 42-year-old’s band are famous for creating the Tragedy dance routine as well as numerous others during their heyday in the late 90s. Fans criticised bosses for signing up the singer-songwriter, claiming she and co-stars like Ashley Roberts might have an advantage over the other famous faces in the competition. However, her friend and bandmate, 41, said she is an “obvious target” and that many of those making up the line-up are likely to have had more of a dance background.
Faye Tozer is an obvious target because she is in a band that does dance routines Claire Richards
Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk prior to the Strictly 2018 launch tonight, she addressed peoples’ complaints. The mother-of-two commented: “Do you know what, you are gonna be very hard pushed to find someone in this industry that doesn't have dance experience.” Claire, whose new single On My Own is out now with her album My Wildest Dreams set to be released on November 2, continued: “I went to school with a boy who was a footballer but he went to tap classes. “If you're a TV presenter, you probably went to stage school so you did dance… it's the unlikely ones.” The married hitmaker went on: “Faye is an obvious target because she is in a band that does dance routines but there's other people that are probably… “They're in the industry but they've always wanted to be in the industry so they went to stage school.
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Faye Tozer has been defended by Steps co-star Claire Richards
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Faye Tozer was criticised for her dance background in Steps
“They're probably more dance trained than people like Faye and me, I haven't had any.” Meanwhile, Claire said she “couldn’t wait” to attend one of the live shows, which kick off next weekend. “So exciting,” she added. “I really want to go in the first week but I don't want to miss out later on.” Tonight’s instalment will see Faye’s professional partner revealed for the first time, after a number of teasing social media posts over the last week. “Getting in the zone physically and mentally for the journey ahead! And then face planted in some chocolate… (good for the soul though right?)” she wrote on Instagram.
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Faye Tozer dancing with Steps
Strictly Come Dancing 2018: Faye Tozer and Steps co-star Claire Richards have remained friends
