{"id":333111,"date":"2025-12-24T10:18:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T10:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/333111\/"},"modified":"2025-12-24T10:18:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T10:18:09","slug":"tess-daly-makes-surprise-strictly-move-in-her-final-ever-appearance-on-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/333111\/","title":{"rendered":"Tess Daly makes surprise Strictly move in her final ever appearance on show"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Tess Daly, co-host of Strictly Come Dancing<\/a>, is set to perform an Argentine tango with professional dancer Aljaz Skorjanec during the show\u2019s highly anticipated Christmas special. <\/p>\n

The festive episode will mark a significant moment for viewers, as it will be the final joint hosting appearance for Daly and her long-standing co-presenter, Claudia Winkleman, following their announcement in October.<\/p>\n

Daly, 56, will grace the ballroom floor alongside Skorjanec, 35, with the performance presented as a special Christmas gift from the judging panel. Judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke will bestow the dance upon her during the pre-recorded episode.<\/p>\n

Adding to the festive cheer, Winkleman, 53, will feature in a parody of the beloved Christmas film Love Actually. <\/p>\n

The segment will see her open a door to Dave Arch, the composer for the Strictly band, who will greet her holding large placards. These will famously read “say it\u2019s carol singers” and “to me, you are perfect,” echoing the iconic scene where Andrew Lincoln\u2019s character, Mark, declares his affection for Juliet, played by Keira Knightley.<\/p>\n

Daly and Winkleman\u2019s last proper Strictly episode took place last Saturday during the series finale,<\/a> and they were left bereft after the BBC show shared a moving tribute to its outgoing hosts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Tess<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Tess Daly and Aljaz Skorjanec dance on BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special 2025 (Guy Levy\/BBC\/PA Wire)<\/p>\n

The Strictly team surprised the pair with a montage of their best bits over the past years, as well as a special message from Queen Camilla<\/a>, which again brought Daly and Winkleman to tears.<\/p>\n

The tribute from Queen Camilla, delivered by long-standing judge Craig Revel Horwood, said: \u201cTess and Claudia, as you prepare to take your final twirl, I just want to say thank you on behalf of the millions who watch you each week.<\/p>\n

Revel Horwood read: \u201cI have often thought that Strictly is not so much a show about dancing as about friendships, the bonds forged, the struggles overcome, and the joy shared in undertaking a joint endeavour.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf that is true, then perhaps yours has been the greatest Strictly partnership of all. The warmth, compassion, and sheer happiness you have radiated with and from each other has been at the heart of the show’s success.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I speak for everyone when I say you have been utterly fabulous. I wish you both every success in wherever life’s journey takes you next, but as one who has appreciated its lifelong benefits, do promise us one thing, keep dancing. \u201c<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the warmest gratitude and admiration, Her Royal Highness, Queen Camilla.\u201d<\/p>\n

The presenters were overwhelmed by the tribute as Daly said: \u201cI can’t speak now. What an honour.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Claudia<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Claudia Winkleman takes part in a Love Actually parody on the Strictly Christmas special (Guy Levy\/BBC\/PA Wire)<\/p>\n

Beyond the hosts\u2019 special moments, the Strictly Christmas special will also feature six celebrities competing for the coveted champion title. The line-up includes TV personality Scarlett Moffatt, paired with Vito Coppola; All Saints singer Melanie Blatt, dancing with Kai Widdrington; and EastEnders star Nicholas Bailey, partnered with Luba Mushtuk. <\/p>\n

Actor and podcaster Babatunde Aleshe will perform with Nancy Xu, Westlife\u2019s Brian McFadden with Michelle Tsiakkas, and Gladiator Jodie Ounsley with Neil Jones.<\/p>\n

While the regular judges will score the performances, the ultimate decision on who wins will rest with the voting studio audience. <\/p>\n

The Strictly Christmas special is scheduled to air on BBC One and iPlayer from 5:30 pm on Christmas Day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":333112,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[96,391,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-333111","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-tv","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/333111","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=333111"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/333111\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/333112"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=333111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=333111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=333111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}