Vernon Kay has hit out at speculation over who will replace his wife Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman on Strictly Come Dancing, as he ‘named’ his new co-host in a frustrated quip
Vernon Kay has hit out at persistent rumours surrounding who might step into the shoes of his wife Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman on Strictly Come Dancing next year. The presenting pair revealed last month they’d be passing on the “sparkly baton” to new hosts following their 12-year partnership.
Their announcement sparked a wave of speculation about potential replacements, with this year’s competitor La Voix among the names being touted. It emerged last week that she was forced to withdraw from the contest after picking up an injury during practice sessions with Aljaz Skorjanec.
Her unexpected exit meant there was no elimination vote, with the previous week’s scores being carried over instead. The results programme, which didn’t include a dance-off, offered an emotional send-off to La Voix alongside a dazzling routine from four former competitors.
During Monday’s chat on his BBC Radio 2 show, Scott Mills remarked about La Voix’s departure: “Terrible news about the ankle, but who gets a send off like that on Strictly?”.
“Normally you have to dance awkwardly with your partner, and it’s not rehearsed,” the former participant continued. “And the band sings ‘I’ve had the time of my life’ and that’s the end of that.”, reports the Mirror.
Taking advantage of the conversation, Vernon seized the moment to express his frustration about the constant speculation regarding potential successors to his wife and co-presenter Claudia. He said: “It’s hilarious really, since Tess and Claud announced that they will be leaving all the dentist, doctors and reception magazines are all saying, ‘It’s going to be this person, it’s going to be that person’. Let me just say this for the record, and I know a lot of people listen to his because we get quoted a lot of times.
“Do you honestly think that the people at Strictly Come Dancing mid-series are going to have a roundtable about who is going to host it next year?”, to which Scott responded: “No, I don’t think that.”
Continuing his tirade, Vernon added: “Sometimes common sense when you put your fingers to the keyboard makes a big difference.”
When Scott enquired if he could be the one to replace his wife, he quipped: “I tell you who it is, it’s me and Rylan [Clark]. There you go, done, simple.”
After Scott’s remark that producers are currently concentrating on the current series, Vernon agreed, declaring: “It’s not even finished, as if they’ve got time! They’ve got a Christmas special to organise, just behave yourselves! Wind your necks in, it does my head in.”
Having been wed to Strictly’s lead presenter for over two decades, Vernon revealed he’s constantly questioned about the show, despite lacking any inside information. Clarifying his stance, Scott interrupted: “What Vernon is saying is stop speculating about who the new hosts will be, because the other ones haven’t finished yet,” to which his colleague responded: “Exactly.”
Alongside La Voix, numerous other household names have been floated as possible replacements, including Holly Willoughby, Paddy McGuinness, Zoe Ball and Alex Jones.
Nevertheless, amid all the rumours, Kate Phillips, the BBC’s Chief Content Officer, recently confirmed that no final choice will be reached until next year.
During an appearance on The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, she explained: “In terms of the process, the production team, BBC Studios and Sarah James [Executive Producer], her team and all these great people who make it, they are now concentrating on getting two shows out a week.
“So we haven’t got time at the moment to start doing any screen tests or chemistry testing. I don’t think we’ll really be looking at it until the New Year because we want to make sure we deliver a great Strictly series.”
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