Dani Dyer confirmed for Strictly Come Dancing 2026 after last year's heartbreak
Dani Dyer will get another shot at Strictly after suffering a devastating injury days before the 2025 series launched.
Dani Dyer will return to Strictly Come Dancing this year.
The 29-year-old TV personality is the second celebrity to be announced for the upcoming series after her 2025 stint was cut short before the competition actually began due to an ankle injury during training, and she is looking forward to a chance at redemption.
She said in a statement: "I am so excited to be back in the ballroom this September!
"I just cannot wait to get my dancing shoes back on and hopefully this time around I can actually make it to week one! I’m just over the moon and cannot wait to find out who else is doing it!”
Announcing the news on Instagram, Facebook and X, the Strictly team said Dani was "back where she belongs – on the Strictly dance floor".
The Love Island alum was forced to pull out of Strictly Come Dancing on September 23 - days before the first live show on September 27 - after she fell and fractured her ankle during rehearsal on September 19.
In December 2025, Dani - who was replaced by fellow Love Islander Amber Davies, 29, who finished runner-up to winner Karen Carney - admitted she was hoping to do the 2026 series.
Dani told The Sunday Mirror's Notebook magazine: "It's up to Strictly because I would absolutely love to do it again. I didn't even really get to start my journey, so I think what's meant to be will be."
The star - daughter of 48-year-old Rivals actor Danny Dyer - was "heartbroken" that her injury had forced her to exit Strictly Come Dancing early.
She said in a statement at the time: "I had a fall on Friday in rehearsals and landed funny. I thought I had rolled my foot, but it swelled up badly over the weekend, and after an MRI scan yesterday, it turns out I have fractured my ankle.
"Apparently, doing the quickstep on a fracture is not advisable, and the doctors have said I am not allowed to dance, so I've had to pull out of the show."
However, she watched the show from the comfort of her sofa.
Dani added: "I am so going to miss dancing with Nikita, but will of course be watching closely and cheering all the couples on."
She is the second star to be confirmed for Strictly this year, after EastEnders icon Lacey Turner was confirmed on Wednesday (10.06.26).
Strictly Come Dancing will return in September with new hosts, Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe, and Johannes Radebe - who had been a pro on the show since 2018 - as well as five new professional dancers.
