Strictly Come Dancing winners: Where are they now?

Strictly Come Dancing is to return for its 21st series this autumn.

Every year a host of celebrity contestants battle it out on the dance floor in a bid  to take home the glitterball trophy.

The line-up for 2023 has been announced and comprises actor and entertainer Les Dennis, former tennis player and broadcaster Annabel Croft, ex-EastEnders star Nigel Harman, Paralympian Jody Cundy, Irish TV presenter Angela Scanlon and Bad Education star Layton Williams.

Also competing is EastEnders actor Bobby Brazier, Coronation Street actor Ellie Leach, radio host Nikita Kanda, Emmerdale star Adam Thomas, TV journalist Angela Rippon, Channel 4 anchor Krishnan Guru-Murthy, actress Amanda Abbington, comedian Eddie Kadi and Love Island star Zara McDermott.

Here is a list of winners from the past six years and where they are now.

– Hamza Yassin

Wildlife cameraman Yassin, 33, won the competition in 2022 with his partner Jowita Przystal.

Since winning, Yassin has gone on to write a children’s book called Be A Birder: The Joy Of Birdwatching And How To Get Started which will be published on September 14.

In April this year the BBC announced he would front Hamza’s Birds Of Prey, a documentary exploring birds of prey, with the TV star saying: “All my life I have had a passion for birds of prey, so this documentary film is a dream come true for me.

“It’s an opportunity to share more of the joy I experienced on Wild Isles whilst I film my top 10 of Britain’s birds of prey.”

– Rose Ayling-Ellis

Rose Ayling-Ellis became the first deaf person to win Strictly Come Dancing in 2021.

In 2022, the actress, 28, took part in a photo shoot with Mattel who released a Barbie doll with a hearing aid.

This year she helped mentor Unify, an all-deaf sign performance group who use British Sign Language (BSL), who performed as part of the King’s coronation celebrations.

She will also appear in ITV drama Code Of Silence, playing a deaf catering worker who uses her lip-reading skills to help the police uncover the conversations of criminals.

This year the actress fronted the BBC One documentary Signs For Change, broadcast in June, which offered viewers a look into the experiences of deaf people.

– Bill Bailey

Comedian Bill Bailey became the oldest celebrity to win the glitterball trophy in 2020 at the age of 55.

Following the show, the 58-year-old has presented TV programmes that include BBC show Extraordinary Portraits and the Sky Arts series Bill Bailey’s Master Crafters: The Next Generation, which follows a group of young crafters who specialise in pursuits that include silver smithing and wood carving.

This November, the comedian is touring his show Thoughtifier around New Zealand.

– Kelvin Fletcher

Kelvin Fletcher, 39, is known for appearing in Emmerdale and won Strictly Come Dancing in 2019 with his partner Oti Mabuse.

Since the show, Fletcher and his family have been seen on screens in BBC programme Kelvin’s Big Farming Adventure, a six-part series which follows the family as they “decamp to the countryside” to build a new life on a farm.

A book about the family called Fletchers On The Farm: Mud, Mayhem And Marriage has been published by the couple.

– Stacey Dooley

TV presenter Stacey Dooley won Strictly Come Dancing in 2018 with her partner Kevin Clifton.

After the couple danced their way to the final, the duo formed a romantic relationship.

In January this year, Dooley announced the birth of their first child Minnie in an Instagram post which said: “Our Daughter is here. My little masterpiece! I’m COMPLETELY OBSESSED. Love you Minnie, Love you Kev x”

Dooley, 36, is famed for her hard-hitting investigative documentaries and, after Strictly, she went on to present an episode of Panorama, titled Stacey Meets The IS Brides, BBC programme Stacey Dooley: Locked Up With The Lifers, and a programme titled Stacey Dooley, Stalkers.

– Joe McFadden

Scottish actor Joe McFadden, known for his role in Holby City, appeared on the BBC One show in 2017 and won with his partner Katya Jones.

After the show, McFadden made a surprise return to Holby City for a special episode, despite the fact his character Raf Di Lucca was shot and killed in 2017.

The actor has also been involved in pantomime shows and this year he joined the 50th anniversary tour of the hit musical The Rocky Horror Show.