For Dani Dyer, the Strictly Come Dancing 2026 line-up offers something more personal than the usual celebrity challenge: a second chance. After an ankle fracture forced her out before week one last year, she is returning alongside six other officially announced contestants for a series already defined by major change.

As of July 23, BBC Studios had confirmed seven celebrities for the programme’s 24th series: Dame Sarah Storey, Lacey Turner, Dani Dyer, Delta Goodrem, Chris Appleton, Cach Mercer and Will Best. Actor Jaime Winstone has also been linked with the show, but reports that she is confirmed are not yet supported by an indexed BBC announcement.

Why Dame Sarah Storey brings a different challenge

Britain’s most successful Paralympian arrives in the ballroom shortly after retiring from elite sport. Dame Sarah Storey, 48, has won 30 Paralympic medals, including 19 golds, across nine Games in swimming and cycling.

Born without a functioning left hand, Storey began competing internationally as a swimmer at 14. Recurring ear infections kept her out of the pool for much of 2005, leading her towards cycling and eventually a permanent switch before the 2008 Beijing Paralympics. She also became a six-time British national track champion.

Storey will be the first dame to compete on Strictly. Her participation gives the production team the important task of adapting traditional ballroom holds and technique around her body rather than treating difference as a limitation.

There is a family connection behind her decision, too. Storey said her daughter Louisa is a talented dancer and that learning from Strictly’s professionals could help her “understand even more about her world.”

“Embarking on a new challenge so soon after stepping down as an athlete is hugely exciting,” she said.

Dani Dyer gets the week one she missed

Dani Dyer’s original Strictly run ended almost as soon as it began. The reality television star joined the 2025 cast and was partnered with Nikita Kuzmin, but withdrew after fracturing her ankle shortly after the launch show.

Amber Davies stepped in at short notice and went on to reach the final with Kuzmin. Dyer later told The Jonathan Ross Show that she would answer immediately if Strictly called again, describing herself as devastated by the injury.

The BBC has now made that return official. The 29-year-old said she was “over the moon” and hoped that this time she could “actually make it to week one.” It is a modest target by competition standards, but after last year, an entirely understandable one.

EastEnders actor Lacey Turner is also moving into unfamiliar territory. Turner, 38, has played Stacey Slater for more than 20 years and is taking a break from Albert Square while pursuing other projects.

“I am a huge fan and can’t quite believe I will be taking part and not watching at home this year,” she said, adding that she was looking forward to learning a new skill.

Which performers are already comfortable on stage?

Australian singer-songwriter Delta Goodrem brings extensive live experience, although ballroom dancing remains new territory. The 41-year-old signed her first record deal at 15, has released seven albums and has sold millions of records. She also represented Australia at Eurovision 2026.

Goodrem said she had performed on television, in theatre, on film sets and during international tours, but had never stepped onto a ballroom floor. Strictly will test whether that stage confidence transfers when the choreography is being judged rather than simply enjoyed.

Celebrity hairstylist Chris Appleton is another contestant accustomed to high-profile company. Born in Leicester, the 43-year-old has worked with Kim Kardashian, Jennifer Lopez, Sofía Vergara and Ariana Grande. Kardashian officiated his 2023 wedding to actor Lukas Gage, although Appleton and Gage later divorced.

“I may know my way around a salon floor, but the dance floor is a whole different story,” Appleton said when his place was announced.

Big Brother presenter Will Best, 41, has plenty of live television experience as AJ Odudu’s co-host and as a presenter on the Hits Radio Breakfast Show. He recently won Celebrity Mastermind with Danny Dyer as his specialist subject, giving him at least one ready-made conversation with Dani Dyer.

Best called Strictly “an absolute dream,” while acknowledging that it was also “pretty terrifying.”

Does Cach Mercer signal a casting shift?

Cach Mercer won Love Island in 2025 with Toni Laites and has since built a substantial social media following. More than 1.3 million TikTok users follow his Afrobeat, hip-hop and street dance videos.

His selection may represent a broader change in Strictly’s casting approach. The programme has previously been reported as reluctant to recruit contestants known principally for reality television, but Mercer arrives directly from one of the format’s biggest franchises.

That does not necessarily give him an easy route through the competition. Street dance experience can provide rhythm, confidence and body control, but ballroom and Latin routines demand different posture, partnering and technique.

Mercer said dancing had been a major passion throughout his life and that he was particularly looking forward to learning the foxtrot. He also recalled watching Strictly with his family, an emotional connection that may help viewers see beyond the familiar reality-TV label.

Is Jaime Winstone officially joining Strictly?

Despite reports presenting Jaime Winstone as a confirmed contestant, her status remains less certain than that of the seven names announced through BBC channels.

On July 21, The Independent reported that The Sun had described Winstone as being “lined up” for the series. BBC Studios’ latest indexed cast announcement, dated July 17, still identified Storey as the seventh confirmed celebrity. A statement attributed to Winstone about entering her “showgirl era” has not appeared in an indexed BBC announcement.

Winstone would nevertheless fit the programme’s established preference for familiar British screen actors. Her film credits include Kidulthood, Bullet Boy, Wild Bill and Tomb Raider. She played Barbara Windsor in the 2017 BBC biopic Babs and later portrayed a young Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders.

She is also the daughter of actor Ray Winstone, whose five-decade career includes The Departed and Beowulf. For now, however, she belongs in the reported rather than confirmed column.

Who else is rumoured for the 2026 cast?

Several other television personalities have been connected with the remaining places, although none has been officially announced.

  • Jeff Brazier: Reports say the 47-year-old presenter has discussed joining three years after his son Bobby Brazier finished as runner-up with Dianne Buswell. A source claimed Jeff had previously resisted because he did not want to “step on Bobby’s toes,” but that Bobby now supports the idea.
  • Josie Gibson: The 41-year-old This Morning presenter, former Big Brother winner and 2023 I’m a Celebrity finalist is reportedly in talks. She has been described as a long-term target for producers.
  • Jake Quickenden: The 37-year-old singer and actor rose to prominence on The X Factor in 2012, later appeared on I’m a Celebrity and won Dancing on Ice in 2018. He currently stars in the CBBC series Jamie Johnson FC and has said he would love to do Strictly.

Reports had previously placed Storey among the rumoured names before the BBC confirmed her, illustrating why the distinction matters during the gradual summer reveal.

How much is changing behind the scenes?

The celebrity cast is only one part of Strictly’s reset. Long-standing presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have left, with Emma Willis, comedian Josh Widdicombe and professional dancer Johannes Radebe taking over hosting duties.

Willis said entering the ballroom was something she “can’t quite comprehend.” BBC chief content officer Kate Phillips said the new trio has “undeniable” chemistry.

The professional roster is also undergoing a substantial overhaul. Karen Hauer, Gorka Márquez, Nadiya Bychkova, Luba Mushtuk and Michelle Tsiakkas have departed. The BBC has said their replacements will be announced closer to transmission, while Neil Jones and Nancy Xu are expected to remain without celebrity partners.

Former professional James Jordan described the departures rather less delicately as “getting rid of dead wood.” The changes place additional pressure on the new hosts and dancers to preserve the warmth viewers expect while making the series feel renewed rather than unfamiliar.

The incoming celebrities will be trying to follow footballer Karen Carney and professional Carlos Gu, who won the 2025 Glitterball Trophy ahead of finalists Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin, and George Clarke and Alexis Warr.

Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer in September.