With the dust just about settling on news of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman's upcoming exits as Strictly Come Dancing hosts, speculation on who could replace them is continuing to ramp up. With a wide range of names being thrown around, bookies' odds reveal who seems to be picking up the most steam.
At the time of writing, there are four names that look to be pulling ahead of the pack, and three of them in particular will be very familiar to Strictly viewers.
Currently, Fleur East is the narrow frontrunner amid many bookmakers, with Ladbrokes installing her as the narrow 2/1 favourite.
Fleur, a former contestant herself, is one of the current hosts of spin-off show Strictly: It Takes Two, and was one of the names we at Digital Spy touted for the job – along with her co-host Janette Manrara, who is also very much in the frame.
She has odds of 3/1, putting her level with Zoe Ball, yet another It Takes Two alum.
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Hannah Waddingham, who has proven her hosting chops at Eurovision and the Olivier Awards, is also 3/1 to take over. Could any combination of those four powerhouse women get the gig?
Behind them, Rylan Clark and Roman Kemp are both on 5/1, while you can gets odds of 6/1 for Holly Willoughby. Glitterball Trophy owners Alesha Dixon and Stacey Dooley are also in the running, along with Scott Mills. You can get odds of 8/1 on any of those.
Alex Scott and Emma Willis (both 10/1) aren't far behind; while Alison Hammond, Chris Ramsey and Rose Ayling-Ellis (12/1) also seem to be in the frame.
It's worth noting that the bookies' odds will likely change multiple times over the weeks and months ahead, and the job could well go to people who aren't even on their radar.
For example, two names that have gained traction on social media but appear absent in the betting markets for now are Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins, who fronted The Great British Bake Off before its move to Channel 4.
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Writer Emma Kennedy said on Threads: "I think I want Mel and Sue to take over Strictly. Mel will be lovely post dance with the judges, Perks will be hilarious in the Clauditorium."
Over on X, one person wrote: "I can imagine Sue and Mel would be great as presenters for Strictly", while another said: "Mel and Sue is the only correct answer."
For now, though, Tess and Claudia will continue to front the current series, as well as the annual Christmas special.
Yesterday, they posted a joint video to Instagram announcing their departure, captioning it: "We have loved working as a duo and hosting Strictly has been an absolute dream. We were always going to leave together and now feels like the right time.
"We will have the greatest rest of this amazing series and we just want to say an enormous thank you to the BBC and to every single person who works on the show. They’re the most brilliant team and we’ll miss them every day.
"We will cry when we say the last ‘keep dancing’ but we will continue to say it to each other. Just possibly in tracksuit bottoms at home while holding some pizza."
Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturdays on BBC One, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Shaun is an Evening News Editor at Digital Spy, with over a decade of experience reporting on all things pop culture. He has written for outlets including Metro, Attitude, Huffington Post, The Mirror, Yahoo!, Pink News and Express Online, specialising in TV, movies, soaps, music and LGBTQ+ issues. He is also a BAFTA Rocliffe-winning scriptwriter, having written episodes of the soap Hollyoaks, the official Steps musical Here & Now and multiple Offie Award-nominated plays. He studied English Literature and Drama at the University of East Anglia, and will happily talk at length about Desperate Housewives to anyone who'll listen.
