Could the BBC have done a worse job calming the show’s troubled waters?

Has Strictly Come Dancing lost its footing? The BBC’s feel-good juggernaut has certainly had a few stumbles over recent years – from bullying allegations to those “grope compare” memes and claims of cocaine use. So for its 21st season, the producers have done their best to put the series back on the straight and narrow… by casting divisive former Apprentice contestant Thomas “Bosh” Skinner as one of the celebrity dancers.

The sort of c-lister the internet was born to hate, Skinner has posed in a Maga hat and attended a Cotswolds barbecue hosted by US vice-president JD Vance. Bish, bash, bosh – could the BBC have done a worse job restoring calm to Strictly’s troubled waters?

That remains to be seen, but the powers that be will be relieved launch night passed without any of the predicted froideur on the dance floor and instead delivered lots of the infectious positivity that is the franchise’s signature. Dramatic, attention-grabbing and slick as anything  – and that was just co-host Claudia Winkleman’s fringe during a funny-ish opening skit featuring 2024 winner, comedian Chris McCausland.

The gag was that McCausland was refusing to hand back the Glitterball Trophy and had locked it in a safe – until judge Craig Revel Horwood was summoned to terrify Chris with one of his dreadful poems. It was a fun bit and the upbeat tone carried on through the show – which alas also suffered from that familiar launch night woe of having far too much padding.

Talk about stretching things out. A sequence introducing two new pro dancers featured the sort of glossy underwater camerawork you usually only encounter when David Attenborough is narrating a porpoise mating ritual. There was also a performance by Jessie J of her forgettable new single, while the segments in which the contestants meet their pro dancers were split into three and hammed up for all they were worth. Screams, tears, deep exhalations of breath – it was like Keir Starmer preparing to meet Donald Trump.

Through it all, the celebs were encouraged to talk about what a great time they were having. Presumably hoping to avoid the Amanda Abbington-Giovanni Pernice rift of several seasons past, they seemed to have been chosen on the basis of their boundless enthusiasm and top drawer mateyness.

Actress and Love Island winner Dani Dyer never stopped smiling. Gladiator and Olympic athlete Harry Aikines-Aryeetey compared meeting his pro partner to a wedding where you didn’t know who the bride was. Ex-footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink reminded us over and over that he was doing Strictly for his daughters, and Neighbours actor Stefan Dennis had a heartwarming story about wanting to learn to dance so that he could take his beloved wife for a twirl. Aah.

Hearts melted all over again as McCausland reunited with his pro-partner Dianne Buswell for one last waltz (before she was paired with fellow Australian Dennis). His advice to the class of 2025 was to “take the dancing seriously, don’t take yourself too seriously”.

Thomas Skinner was one of the final contestants unveiled and was in full wide-boy mode. He admitted that he hadn’t quite grasped how much sacrifice would be required. He’d been under the impression he could nip down to the market in the morning, take in a West Ham game, and then arrive at the Strictly studios for a quick twirl.

“I do feel like the underdog,” he shrugged, looking nervous.

Whether he’s the underdog or pantomime villain, he and the rest of the celebs are up and running and threw some impressive moves into a first-night samba soundtracked by a mash-up of Rosé’s APT and Chappell Roan’s Pink Pony Club. It was a smooth ending to an impressively glossy episode – and the BBC will pray a thoroughly uncontroversial launch night will set the tone for the rest of what could be a make-or-break season.

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