Predicting who is going to win Strictly Come Dancing early on in the competition has become something of a fine art. This new series is already causing debate, following the changes in the voting rules. In a bid to make things more transparent, the BBC this year has tried to clear up confusion over its voting system.
The show has also recently weathered criticisms of celebrity professionals like Amber Davies and Lewis Cope coming into the competition with serious dance experience under their belt.
Despite all that, millions of viewers are still tuning in to watch the biggest Saturday night show on telly, so with that being said, Digital Spy has uncovered all the ways you can deduce who the winners and losers are going to be in 2025…
Rule 1: Be an EastEnders star
There’s a long-running Strictly joke about how the show should be renamed Strictly Come Walford, because it seems mandatory to have an EastEnders star in every single series – and when you look back at the stats, most of them have done really well.
Former EastEnders actresses Jill Halfpenny, Kara Tointon and Rose Ayling-Ellis all went on to win the Glitterball Trophy.
Bobby Brazier finished runner up in 2023, as did Maisie Smith in 2020, Emma Barton, 2019, Kellie Bright in 2015, while the likes of Letitia Dean and Louisa Lytton finished high up the leaderboard.
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So what is it about EastEnders that makes them popular enough to be kept in by voters to the very end? Partly it's because they have a huge shared audience with Strictly, but it's also possibly helped that at the BBC Studios, the EastEnders set and the practice Dance Floor are next door to each other. It can’t hurt being close by and jumping into extra rehearsals to get ahead of the competition.
But coming from EastEnders is not always a runaway guarantee of success. Shamefully, even today, race and misogyny can still rear their ugly heads and act against EastEnders stars who come from minority backgrounds.
This year’s brilliant EastEnders candidate, Balvinder Sopal (Suki Kaur Panesar, now Unwin), found herself in the dreaded dance-off in week three against TV presenter Ross King, despite having a respectable 26 points for her foxtrot that placed her higher on the leaderboard than King and four others.
Viewers took to social media to point out that Balvinder may have fallen victim to racism in terms of a lack of audience votes. It would not be the first time a race row around an EastEnders star has blown up. In 2016, EastEnders actress Tameka Empson left the show after losing a dance-off against TV presenter Laura Whitmore.
Empson was the second of three black contestants in a starting line-up of 15 to have left the show that year, in only the second week where viewers had been given a vote.
Rule 2: Be an Influencer / YouTuber
The influencers and YouTube stars of today who star on the show benefit massively from a loyal following, just like the EastEnders lot – this is from their big digital following of youngsters who are used to voting online.
The BBC’s decision to move voting entirely online this series via the website or a QR code has caused upset among elderly viewers who would have previously voted by phone.
But in terms of voting, it puts in an advantageous position those dancing in the competition who can boast a high number of younger fans.
A case in point is social-media star George Clarke, who is currently still the favourite to win the show thanks to his loyal fanbase. Since starting his channel in 2019, he has amassed more than 48 million views.
His energetic style and growing confidence have made him a consistent crowd-pleaser on top of having such a huge online following.
After three weeks of competition, the social media star wowed with his K-Pop-inspired Couple’s Choice, and despite currently being third from the top of the leaderboard, remains the bookmakers’ favourite at 11/4 to take home the Glitterball trophy.
Rule 3: Going on a journey
Strictly is much more than a dance competition. Viewers like to feel a human connection with the celebrities and their dance partners, and see behind their public faces.
The word "journey" sounds contrived, and takes us back to those dreaded X Factor days when some dreary wannabe would claim he or she was doing it for their dying gran and not really to win fame and fortune.
But in terms of Strictly, a person’s ability to connect with viewers goes a long way in determining how they cast their votes each weekend. A contestant who shows vulnerability and humility and takes viewers on a journey with them throughout the show by growing in confidence and ability, while overcoming personal adversity, without fuss or fanfare, can create a bond that turns into votes.
Recent examples include Chris McCausland and Rose Ayling-Ellis, both hugely likeable people who were completely their authentic selves throughout the competition and remained modest about their extraordinary achievements.
Rule 4: The 'novelty act'
Remember Ed Balls and Ann Widdecombe? Both managed to stay in week after week despite not being able to dance a step.
In Ann’s case, she failed at even being dragged along the floor like a human duster.
But it mattered not a jot. Despite no talent, they were sufficiently inept and beloved by viewers to stay in long after they should have been eliminated, because the audience enjoys being entertained.
A wild-card contestant gives the competition the unpredictability it needs to remain interesting, as well as serving comedy value that keeps us tuning in for their next escapade.
Of course, sometimes it can backfire. Tom Skinner was voted out first this year: he wasn’t endearing enough to stay, because his arrogance and bluster didn’t land with viewers. Even his lovely professional partner, Amy Dowden, who is adored by Strictly fans, couldn’t save him.
Rule 5: The Judge’s votes
The judges votes give the strongest clue how somebody is doing. Consistently high votes from the judges can elevate a celebrity in the public’s eyes and increase their popularity.
Of course, the judges' vote is the final decider because it means that even if the public put someone inappropriate in the bottom, the judges can mitigate it by eliminating the least good dancer of the two.
However, the BBC has explained that viewers’ votes take precedence over the judge’s scoring cards.
"The Strictly Come Dancing scoring system combines judges and viewers votes,” it says. “No couple is guaranteed to be safe on judges' votes alone, however, and the viewers' votes can always influence the outcome. This means each week, any couple can face or be saved from the dance off with the public vote. In the event of a tie, the viewers' votes will take precedence over the Judges' scoring."
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