Strictly Come Dancing 2026: Emma Willis is 'ready for negative comments' ahead of her presenting debut this weekend
'We aren't Tess and Claudia'Emma Willis is steeling herself for an onslaught of “negativity” as she makes her Strictly Come Dancing hosting debut this weekend.
In a new chat, Emma has explained how she plans to handle criticism and comparisons with the BBC show’s former hosts.
The new Strictly presenting team picks up the baton from Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman after their departure last year.
Emma, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe want to share the work instead of inheriting fixed individual roles.
But Emma says she is “ready” for complaints from disgruntled viewers ahead of the new series.
Emma Willis expects Strictly scrutiny
Emma’s extensive live television experience includes presenting Big Brother, The Voice UK and Love Is Blind. However, she remains realistic about the pressures surrounding one of the BBC’s biggest entertainment programmes.
Emma told the Press Association and a string of other publications: “I don’t know if it helps, but I definitely know what to expect.”
She continued: “I’m ready for the comparisons. I am ready for the negative things, opinions that can come with these things. But on the flip side, those things I don’t engage with or read, and there are always positives as well.”
Emma wants her new co-hosts to concentrate on the uplifting purpose behind the ballroom competition.
She said: “We aren’t reinventing the wheel. We’re not rocket scientists. We’re working on an entertainment show about dancing that is meant to bring joy to everybody watching it.
“Hopefully we can be a small part of that joy and have a really lovely time doing it.”
Emma also acknowledged the nerves created by accepting such a prominent presenting job.
She added: “There’s obviously a fear, because of the enormity of it and you have nerves about being good enough to step into the role.
“But there’s definitely no hesitation. As a presenter, there are few shows on for that length of time that are live television. They’re few and far between now, so it was definitely a positive aspect of it for me.”
She also stressed that the trio would not attempt to imitate their predecessors: “We aren’t Tess and Claudia,” she insisted. “They bring their personality, their views and love for Strictly, and we will bring our version of that.”
Strictly hosts reveal secret audition process
Emma’s co-hosts Josh and Johannes were also present at the press chat. They spoke about the strict cloak and dagger hiring process earlier this ear.
The BBC took candidates to a secret location, while drivers were given a cover name for the project. Emma previously revealed they were given the fake TV show name, The Great Garden Glow Up.
Josh compared the journey to an espionage novel. He said: “It was like being a spy in the Cold War. I was pretending I was in a John Le Carré book.”
Candidates initially auditioned in pairs, and Josh had been told a three-person team was not planned. He recalled: “I remember thinking, that’s a shame because that would give me more chance to get it.”
Josh was later waiting anxiously for a callback when Johannes entered the room. Johannes said: “I was like, are they pitching us against each other?”
Josh had reached a similarly uncertain conclusion. He joked: “Yeah, the two weirdos against each other, is that how this is working?”
Producers then brought Emma into the room for an unexpected chemistry test involving all three presenters.
Emma recalled: “They said, listen, this is just kind of last minute. What we’ve seen across the week, we just wondered, could it work as a three, and how would you three be together?
“We were like, don’t know, hopefully good.”
When does Strictly Come Dancing start?
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One at 7.25pm on Saturday September 19. The show will run until 9.15pm and it will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Viewers will finally get to see this year’s celebrities meeting their professional partners. They will then all dance together for the first time.
The votes lines won’t, however, open until the following week. The first live show airs on Saturday September 26, 2026.
Read more: Strictly Come Dancing fans divided as 2026 pairings ‘leak’ days before launch show airs
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One at 7.25pm on Saturday September 19, 2026.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI technology to synthesise source reporting and structured data. It has been reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by our human editorial team before publication.
