Wynne Evans joins Strictly Come Dancing line-up
Welsh opera singer Wynne Evans is the latest contestant to be announced for the Strictly Come Dancing line-up.
The news was shared on Vernon Kay’s BBC Radio 2 show on Tuesday.
Evans is best known as the moustachioed tenor from the Go Compare adverts and is a presenter on BBC Radio Wales.
Born in Carmarthen, Evans was also crowned Celebrity MasterChef champion for 2023.
He joins blind comedian Chris McCausland and JLS star JB Gill, BBC Morning Live’s resident doctor Punam Krishan and Toyah Wilcox, with more names to be revealed soon.
“Nervous”
After being unveiled as the latest contestant for Strictly, Wynne Evans said he is most looking forward to taking on the ballroom numbers but he is “nervous” for the lively dances.
He told Vernon Kay on his BBC Radio 2 show: “Last night, even for this reveal and talking to you, I was so nervous. It was like first day of school and I couldn’t sleep again.”
Reflecting on what he’s looking forward to, he said: “The classic ballroom stuff is the one I’m looking forward to the most because obviously for 20 years I was an opera singer so we did quite a lot of classic Ballroom in opera.”
He added: “The stuff I’m really nervous about is the stuff that needs any kind of jumping because I think I represent every portly middle aged father who’s like ‘I don’t want to really do the jive and set a minor tsunami off in North London’.”
After Toyah Willcox was revealed on the show moments later, she said getting to Blackpool week would be meaningful for her as her mother danced in the seaside town when she was aged 18.
She also said she needs to “stop seeing myself as the Ann Widdecombe of dance and music”.
Controversy
The announcements come after swimmer Tom Dean announced he will be appearing on the show after reaching the final of the men’s 200 metres individual medley in the Paris 2024 Olympics last week.
The popular BBC dancing show has made headlines recently after a storm of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants on the show.
The results of an investigation, launched by the BBC following allegations made about Giovanni Pernice by former participant Amanda Abbington, have not yet been published by the corporation.
Pernice rejects the allegations and fellow dancer Graziano Di Prima has also left the show.
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Noooooooooooo! We won’t hear the end of this now on his BBC Wales radio show.
Other radio stations are available.
Just looked at the clip of Wynne putting his hand on the female dancing partner’s stomach in a very creepy way. She obviously felt uncomfortable and moved it.
Not sure why they both say it was a joke??
PR agents told them to say I suppose.