Jodie Ounsley, famous for her role as Fury on the show Gladiators, is the latest celebrity confirmed to be taking part in the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special, joining two others already announced.
The 24-year-old BBC athlete will compete against five other celebrities on the popular Christmas Day dance competition for the chance to win the glitterball trophy.
Jodie has been deeply deaf since she was a baby. As a young child, she received a cochlear implant, making her one of the youngest people in the UK to get the surgery.
On Monday’s episode of Strictly: It Takes Two, it was revealed that she’ll be dancing with professional Neil Jones on the BBC show.
Jodie, a former rugby and jiu jitsu star, excitedly said she’s eager to start practicing her routine.
She expressed her excitement about participating in the Strictly Christmas Special, and shared that she’s proud to be the first female rugby player to do so.
I’m really excited to start and see how it goes! I’m used to physical contact, so this will be a different kind of test.
After 21 years, Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman will host the show for the last time before stepping down.
Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke will be the judges, but the studio audience will ultimately decide the winner of the Christmas special.
Jodie is the latest celebrity to join the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special, alongside Scarlett Moffatt and Melanie Blatt.
Scarlett will dance with professional Vito Coppola on this year’s Strictly Christmas special in December.
She first became well-known appearing on the show Gogglebox with her family, and later won the reality competition I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in 2016.
She’s an experienced dancer, having competed in ballroom dancing at the famous Blackpool competition when she was a child. She was a semi-professional dancer and even shared a charming video of herself performing a tango at age ten.
Scarlett shared her excitement about appearing on the Strictly Christmas special, saying the show has always been meaningful to her and being involved feels wonderful.
Honestly, this show just gets people. It’s the thing everyone talks about, the thing families watch together. And being even a tiny part of something that brings that kind of joy? It’s seriously the best thing that’s ever happened to me, both professionally and personally. I’m completely obsessed, and so proud to be involved!
I expect this will be a real workout, and I’ll probably discover some new muscles! I’m so excited to have a great time and really let loose on the dance floor.
Singer Melanie, best known as a member of the 90s group All Saints, will also appear in the Christmas special.
Melanie will be dancing with Kai Widdrington, age 30, who previously partnered with reality TV star Vicky Pattison, 38, on this season’s show.
Speaking ahead of the show, Melaine said: ‘If you can’t have a dance at Christmas, when can you?!
‘I’m so excited to meet Kai and start training to make this a dance to remember.’
This week on BBC Two’s Strictly: It Takes Two at 6:30pm, the final three celebrities joining the 2025 Strictly Christmas special will be revealed.
Filming will take place on December 9 and will be on our screens on December 25.
This year on Strictly Come Dancing, Jodie’s co-star from Gladiator, Nitro (Harry Aikines-Aryeetey), was paired with professional dancer Karen Hauer.
Sadly, Harry was voted off the show in week 7 after losing a dance-off against La Voix and Aljaž Skorjanec.
After leaving the show, he expressed his gratitude, saying, ‘Thank you to everyone. The special atmosphere of Strictly Come Dancing is amazing to watch on television, but experiencing it firsthand is truly incredible.’
It takes a village – everyone involved, from the people on camera to those behind the scenes, like the makeup artists, wardrobe team, and all the support staff in this building – to make this happen.
When you watch a show and feel inspired, it’s usually the people involved – their energy and positivity – that really stick with you and motivate you to be your best self.
He also wanted to give a special thanks to Rebecca, who he described as being like a little sister and always looking out for the team. He expressed his gratitude to everyone for making the experience so wonderful.
He first gained recognition as a competitor on a holiday-themed show in 2024, where he partnered with Nancy Xu.
Montell Douglas, who competed as ‘Fire’ on the show Gladiators, was also a contestant on the regular series last year. She and Johannes Radebe made it to the tenth week of competition.
The Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer this Christmas.
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2025-11-24 22:51