A former Strictly professional has paid tribute to Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman on GB News after they announced they both will be leaving the ballroom behind them in a matter of months.
In a heartfelt statement, the “iconic” pair announced their departure on Thursday morning, beckoning a slew of heartbroken and loving messages their way.
Speaking on GB News, ex Strictly pro and entrepeneur AJ Pritchard told Tom Harwood and Dawn Neesom what Tess and Claudia will leave in their wake once the duo depart from the show.
“”I think they’re iconic aren’t they? Tess and Claud,” Mr Pritchard fondly told the GB News hosts.
Mr Pritchard sat down with Tom and Dawn on GB News
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GB NEWS
Continuing on about the speculation surrounding possible replacements, he added: “But I think people worry. Like, is the magic of the show missing?
“I think the magic of Strictly is the pros, the crew, the hair, the makeup, everything that it is.
“But I think my one worry is making sure that when you’re going to, like, replace somebody like Tess and Claud, it needs to be somebody that is quirky, original. Like, French and Saunders.”
“They are so well placed to bounce off each other. They do it so perfectly. That is the scary part. How do you replace such an iconic double act duo?”
Although the two BBC hosts only made the massive announcement this morning, the rumour mill has already spun out of control over who will take over next series in 2026.
According to Paddy Power Games, It Takes Two presenters Fleur East (2/1) and Janette Manrara (7/2) are just a couple of the frontrunners to jump over to the flagship series next year.
But they are not the outright favourite for the role, with BBC fan-favourite and The One Show star Roman Kemp leading the flurry of exciting contenders at 7/4.
Meanwhile, the bookmakers have their eye on X Factor alumnus Rylan Clark (9/2), as well as Alison Hammond (8/1) and Emma Willis (8/1) as potentials to come on board.
Among the outsiders for the gig include names such as Maura Higgins (12/1) and ITV double act Ant & Dec (20/1).
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Making the announcement this morning, Ms Winkleman and Ms Daly penned: “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.
The duo paired a heartfelt statement on Instagram on Thursday morning
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PA
“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.”
Ms Winkleman said: “We’re so lucky to have been part of this amazing show, and we just want to thank the Strictly team, because Strictly is the people who make it. So thank you.”
Ms Daly lauded the programme’s team was “the very best in television”, while thanking the “wonderful audience” too.
“They’ve been with us for this entire journey of 21 years, and we wouldn’t have a show without them, and they’ve been just so loyal and supportive,” she added.
Ms Daly started presenting the show back in 2004 with Sir Bruce Forsyth, with Ms Winkleman joining the team later on It Takes Two before moving over to the main Saturday night bonanza.