Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special 2025: glitter, gossip and one last bow for Tess & Claudia
- A festive one-off that keeps the Strictly Christmas tradition alive after two glittering decades.
- A 2025 celebrity line-up stuffed with pop stars, comics, soap royalty and a Gladiator in a ballgown.
- The final Christmas outing for Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman as hosts, turning the studio into one giant leaving do.
- Classic Strictly format with single show, rapid-fire training montages and one winner crowned with the festive Glitterball.
- Perfect background to your post-turkey slump if you enjoy sequins, dad dancing and the occasional emotional breakdown over a rumba.
Strictly at Christmas: a sparkly staple since the mid-2000s
How the Christmas special became part of the TV calendar
Strictly Come Dancing has been rolling out Christmas specials almost every festive season since the mid-2000s, turning ballroom into a tinsel-covered ritual. The main series finishes, everyone pretends to rest, and then the BBC quietly wheels the glitterball back out on Christmas Day like it never left.
Across those years the Christmas episodes have pulled in past contestants, new celebrities and the odd national treasure, all condensed into a single high-energy show. In the era from late 2005 up towards 2026, it has become one of the most reliable non-movie festive centrepieces on British telly, parked firmly between turkey sandwiches and your annual family row over Monopoly. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Where the 2025 special fits in that tradition
The 2025 edition keeps that pattern going, landing on Christmas Day with a cast pulled from soaps, reality hits and pop music. It’s designed as a cosy, low-commitment one-off, so you don’t need to remember who topped the leaderboard in Week 6 back in October. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Instead you get a highlight-reel version of Strictly compressed into a single evening: training clips, judges’ put-downs, emotional VTs and one winner crowned before the Quality Street tin officially runs out.
The 2025 line-up: pop stars, soap doctors and a Gladiator with heel potential
Who is lacing up their dance shoes this Christmas
The 2025 Christmas Special cast reads like someone raided the entire British TV listings and picked the most enthusiastic people in sequins. TV favourite Scarlett Moffatt swaps jungle trials for jive kicks, partnered with former champion pro Vito Coppola. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}
All Saints singer Mel Blatt brings 90s pop royalty to the floor with Kai Widdrington, and EastEnders alumnus Nicholas Bailey trades Albert Square drama for festive foxtrots alongside Luba Mushtuk. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
The wildcards and probable fan favourites
Gladiators star Jodie Ounsley, better known as Fury, brings athletic power and a cochlear implant representation story that will have the VT producers weeping with joy. Former Westlife member Brian McFadden adds boyband nostalgia and a chance to prove he can spin without recreating a wedding disco. :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4}
Comedian Babatunde Aléshé joins the mix, bringing street and break-dance experience that could either look slick or like your cousin showing off at 11pm on Christmas Eve. Together, they form a cast pitched perfectly at “your mum knows at least three of them, and your nan has Googled one just to be sure”. :contentReference[oaicite:5]{index=5}
One last festive show for Tess and Claudia
Why this special doubles as a farewell party
This year’s Christmas edition isn’t just about the contestants; it’s the final hosting outing for Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. After years of sharing backstage giggles, fringe-based chaos and oddly specific questions about “how that felt,” they’re bowing out together on this festive special. :contentReference[oaicite:6]{index=6}
The result is a show that carries a little extra sentimentality, as the pair front one more night of sparkly nonsense before handing over the reins in future series.
How that changes the tone of the episode
Expect more behind-the-scenes nods, affectionate tributes from pros and celebrities, and a studio audience that knows it’s watching the end of a particular Strictly era. The script will likely lean into nostalgia, with callbacks to early-series mishaps and the kind of warm in-jokes that long-term viewers will appreciate.
If you’re the sort of person who gets emotional when someone thanks the wardrobe department, this may be the one Christmas show that makes you cry harder than the King’s Speech.
Format, judging and how the Christmas Glitterball is won
What actually happens in the Christmas special
The Christmas episode compresses the Strictly format into a single ninety-ish minutes of glittery chaos. Each couple performs just one routine, themed heavily around Christmas motifs, from snow-covered Viennese waltzes to salsas that look like bauble explosions.
The judges give out scores with their usual mix of inflated paddles and theatrical horror, but with slightly softer edges than the main series. Nobody wants to be the person who ruins Christmas by calling a national treasure “stompy”.
How the winner is chosen
Traditionally, a mix of judges’ scores and public voting decides who takes home the festive Glitterball, though the exact weighting can shift between years. The aim is less about cut-throat competition and more about delivering one huge feel-good finale that lets viewers cheer for their favourite without needing a spreadsheet. :contentReference[oaicite:7]{index=7}
In practice, the winner is usually the person who combines competent dancing, strong personality and a backstory that makes the nation say, “Oh go on then, give it to them, it’s Christmas.”
Vibes, music and production: Christmas turned up to eleven
What the show looks and sounds like
Visually, the Christmas special pushes the Strictly aesthetic into almost parodic territory, with the set drenched in fake snow, oversized presents and more fairy lights than your average garden centre. The costume department throws subtlety out of the window, opting for red, green, gold and enough glitter to personally upset Greta Thunberg.
The music choices lean heavily on festive classics, re-arranged into dance-friendly versions that occasionally commit crimes against key changes. Expect everything from swingy big-band carols to Latin reworks of songs that were clearly never meant for a samba.
Comedy, emotion and unintentional chaos
Because everyone knows it’s a one-night event, the mood is looser and funnier than the main series, with more room for silliness and themed skits. You’ll see pros corpsing, celebrities leaning into comedy choreography, and the odd prop malfunction that feels almost deliberately left in for memes.
At the same time, the show never misses the chance for emotional beats, whether that’s an underdog story, a tribute to family or Tess talking earnestly about what Strictly has meant to viewers over the years.
Who the Strictly Christmas special is best suited for
Casual viewers, super-fans and festive multitaskers
If you like Strictly but struggle to follow a full series, the Christmas special is the ideal low-effort catch-up. You get the vibe, the glamour and the judges without needing a long-term relationship with the leaderboard.
For hardcore fans, it functions as an encore to the main run, with returning pros, familiar faces and enough in-jokes to justify pausing the family chatter for ninety minutes. It’s also perfect background TV for people determined to win at Christmas snack grazing while still “watching something together”.
Who might want to skip it
If you break out in hives at the sight of synchronised dancing, relentless positivity or novelty jumpers, this may not be your moment. Viewers who prefer their Christmas telly grim and brooding might be better off with a Scandi-noir rerun.
But for anyone who enjoys a bit of daft, glitter-drenched comfort TV, this special is almost engineered in a lab to hit your dopamine receptors between mince pies.
When and how to watch
The all-important schedule slot
The Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special 2025 is set to air on Christmas Day on BBC One, continuing the show’s long tradition of festive scheduling dominance. It typically lands in the late afternoon or early evening, slotted neatly around soaps, royal messages and that one relative who insists on a post-lunch walk. :contentReference[oaicite:8]{index=8}
Exact times can shift as the BBC tinkers with its Christmas grid, but you can safely assume it will sit in prime viewing territory where even your most dance-averse family member gets sucked in “just for five minutes”.
Catching up and rewatching
Once broadcast, the special should be available on BBC iPlayer, where Strictly episodes usually live for a while after transmission. That makes it easy to rewatch favourite routines or catch up if you were temporarily distracted by a flaming Christmas pudding. :contentReference[oaicite:9]{index=9}
Given the long-running popularity of Strictly festive episodes, don’t be surprised if clips and routines circulate on social media well into the New Year, providing handy ammunition for debates about who was robbed.