Surprise new favourite emerges to host Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing bosses were "blown away" by the audition of a male comedian, who is now favourite to be the new host.
Josh Widdicombe is the surprise new favourite to host Strictly Come Dancing.
A host of celebrities have been in consideration to anchor the BBC Latin and ballroom competition following the departures of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, and it's now been claimed the 43-year-old comic could be the show's first male host since the late Sir Bruce Forsyth after producers were left "blown away" by his audition.
A source told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: "Josh blew the producers away with his dead-pan, witty banter.
“He is family friendly, having helmed several shows now, and loves Strictly.
“After years as a stand-up, he can handle a live audience and is razor-sharp.
“He’s not a household name, yet, and so to step into Brucie’s shoes would be a stellar move for his career.”
The Last Leg presenter previously took part in the Strictly Christmas special in 2024.
Auditions are believed to have taken place over the last few weeks, with producers said to have been approaching the try-outs - for which the likes of Rylan Clark, Emma Willis, Tom Allen, Angela Scanlon and Alex Jones were all in consideration - with an open mind in order to find the best possible paring.
A source told The Sun newspaper: "It's not just about reading autocue. They'll be looking at how people work together and humour is a massive part of it. There's everything to play for.
"They really want to bring the fun this year. It's all about chemistry and who clicks instantly and can keep the energy up live on air.
"They could stick with two female hosts as that's worked brilliantly. But they're also open to mixing it up.
"If Rylan and Tom Allen click, that could be a hilarious pairing. Equally, they could even introduce a third presenter to shake things up."
Tess and Claudia previously announced their decision to quit Strictly via a joint statement.
The co-hosts said: "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."
