‘No plans’ for same-sex dance pairings on Strictly Come Dancing
The BBC says it has no plans to include same-sex dance couples on Strictly Come Dancing, after the US equivalent broke down barriers.
Dancing With The Stars featured a same-sex couple dancing the tango this week, during a ‘Judges’ Team-Up Challenge’ segment.
America’s Next Top Model star Nyle DiMarco was paired up with dancer Keo Motsepe for a routine, and the pair won huge applause from the audience with an Argentine tango routine.
However, despite the change going down well in the US, BBC bosses say they still have no plans to change their system that requires opposite-sex dancing pairs.
A source told entertainment site Digital Spy: “We wouldn’t rule it out, but there are no immediate plans for a competing same-sex pairing.
“It’s certainly too early to be saying what will happen this year.”
The latest season of the BBC show is set to begin in September.
Strictly has featured same-sex dancing segments in group routines – but not in the main competition element of the show.
A gay celeb claimed last year that he was dropped after he asked to be paired with a male dancer.
Eggheads star CJ de Mooi said he was originally meant to appear on the dance show, but was snubbed by the programme after he said he wanted to dance with a man.
The BBC has strongly denied the allegations, saying de Mooi’s agent approached Strictly to offer him for the show, but that he had never been under consideration.
The spokesperson said: “We didn’t ever approach nor did we have any plans to approach CJ to participate in this year’s series of Strictly Come Dancing. CJ’s agent gave us the opportunity to consider him but there was only one person we ever wanted from Eggheads and that was Jeremy Vine and we are delighted that we got our man.”
Judge Craig Revel Horwood previously confirmed changes will take place in the next two seasons to remove the gender rules – but later said the change was unlikely to happen.
Former Strictly dancer James Jordan insisted last year that having a same sex couple dancing on the show would be “wrong” because “they would lose so many viewers.”
He went on: “I have nothing against same-sex couples, if they want to go and do their own competitions.
“But ballroom and Latin dancing is about a man dancing with a woman – that’s fact.”
However Jordan’s wife – current Strictly dancer Ola Jordan – shut down her husband. When asked if she agreed with him, she said flatly “no”.
