Strictly Come Dancing duo Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have officially bowed out of the ballroom, and now a BBC Radio star’s famous dad has admitted she could bag the job
We’re one step closer to finding out who could replace Tess and Claudia on Strictly.
Fans of the BBC show were shocked in October when hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman announced that they were quitting after this year’s series. They bid us farewell at the show’s final on Saturday night – which saw Lioness Karen Carney lift the glitterball.
Fans have been speculating who could replace the pair and present the series when it returns next year. The likes of Rylan Clark, Fleur East and even Lioness Alex Scott have been suggested as possible contenders.
And Radio 2 icon Zoe Ball, 55, is one of these names. The broadcaster appeared on Strictly in 2005 and spin-off show It Takes Two from 2011 until 2021.
But it turns out there’s truth to the rumours as her famous dad has revealed she’s “in the mix”. Discussing the prospect of Zoe advancing to host the main show, he told the Express: “Nothing’s going to be decided until after Easter, but she’s in the mix, and people are coming to her, but it’s too early to say.”
He added: “I think she would love it, I think she would love the job because she took over from Claudia on It Takes Two, and if anything, she did a better job than Claudia.”
Johnny’s update comes after Zoe stoked speculation she will host Strictly when she shared a horoscope message on Instagram that promised big changes for Sagittarians in 2026. The post stated: “It will be a powerful year for you. There’s a lot of newness and freshness coming into your life. There’s a lot to feel and heal.”
The caption continued: “You’re clearing a lot of old karma this year, karma that is older than you in this life, karma that encompasses much larger cycles of who you are. You are being asked to find your way back home, to where you belong within yourself.”
It concluded: “This year wants you to unlearn so many things and meet yourself in an organic and raw way, without any filters or glitters, just to experience yourself clean and clear.”
It came after Zoe quit her Radio 2 show – with her final live show airing on Saturday 20 December 2025. She told listeners: “I have loved being betwixt my dear friends Romesh (Ranganathan) and Rylan (Clark), and you know, I love you all to bits, but I’m not disappearing completely.
“Obviously, it’ll be Christmas Crooners and I’m doing an eras show in the new year, more on that later. But I am thrilled to tell you that you will be in the safest of hands, because there is a super woman who is no stranger to you all, but this does mean that she will officially become a member of the Radio 2 family.
“You’ll have loved her on The Voice, The Circle, Big Brother, Cooking With The Stars, Love Is blind, and delivering babies, she’s a gorgeous lass so welcome to the BBC Radio 2 family and Saturday afternoons, Emma Willis.”
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