Strictly Come Dancing returned for its sixteenth series with a launch show on 8 September 2018 on BBC One, and the first live show on 22 September. Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman returned as hosts, while Zoe Ball returned to host Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two on BBC Two. Shirley Ballas, Darcey Bussell, Craig Revel Horwood, and Bruno Tonioli returned as judges. On 20 October, actor Alfonso Ribeiro stood in as a guest judge to cover for Tonioli.
In this series, three new dance styles were introduced — contemporary, theatre/jazz, and street/commercial — as part of a new category called "couple's choice".
Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton were announced as the winners on 15 December 2018, while Joe Sugg and Dianne Buswell, Faye Tozer and Giovanni Pernice, and Ashley Roberts and Pasha Kovalev were the runners-up.
Format
The couples dance each week in a live show. The judges score each performance out of ten. The couples are then ranked according to the judges' scores and given points according to their rank, with the lowest scored couple receiving one point, and the highest scored couple receiving the most points (the maximum number of points available depends on the number of couples remaining in the competition). The public are also invited to vote for their favourite couples, and the couples are ranked again according to the number of votes they receive, again receiving points; the couple with the fewest votes receiving one point, and the couple with the most votes receiving the most points.
The points for judges' score and public vote are then added together, and the two couples with the fewest points are placed in the bottom two. If two couples have equal points, the points from the public vote are given precedence. As with the previous series, the bottom two couples have to perform a dance-off on the results show. Based on that performance alone, each judge then votes on which couple should stay and which couple should leave, with Shirley Ballas, as head judge, having the last and deciding vote.
Professional dancers On 30 May 2018, the list of professionals returning for the sixteenth series was revealed. Professionals from the last series who did not return included Brendan Cole and Chloe Hewitt. Graziano Di Prima, Luba Mushtuk, and Johannes Radebe replaced them. Mushtuk and Radebe did not have celebrity partners; however, Di Prima did.
Couples This series featured fifteen celebrity contestants. On 13 August 2018, the first three celebrities announced to be participating in the series were Katie Piper, Faye Tozer, and Danny John-Jules. Celebrity reveals continued across that month before concluding on 21 August on Good Morning Britain. Celebrity Notability Professional partner Status Television presenter & fashion journalist Anton Du Beke Eliminated 1st Lee Ryan Blue singer & EastEnders actor Nadiya Bychkova Eliminated 2ndon 7 October 2018 Katie Piper Philanthropist & television presenter Gorka Márquez Eliminated 3rdon 14 October 2018 Vick Hope Capital FM presenter Graziano Di Prima Eliminated 4thon 21 October 2018 Seann Walsh Stand-up comedian Katya Jones Eliminated 5thon 28 October 2018 Dr. Ranj Singh This Morning presenter & author Janette Manrara Eliminated 6thon 4 November 2018 Danny John-Jules Stage & screen actor Amy Dowden Eliminated 7thon 11 November 2018 Kate Silverton BBC News presenter & journalist Aljaž Škorjanec Eliminated 8thon 18 November 2018 Graeme Swann England cricketer Oti Mabuse Eliminated 9thon 25 November 2018 Charles Venn Casualty actor Karen Clifton Eliminated 10thon 2 December 2018 Lauren Steadman Paralympic swimmer & paratriathlete AJ Pritchard Eliminated 11thon 9 December 2018 Ashley Roberts The Pussycat Dolls singer Pasha Kovalev Runners-upon 15 December 2018 Faye Tozer Steps singer Giovanni Pernice Joe Sugg YouTube personality Dianne Buswell Stacey Dooley Investigative journalist Kevin Clifton Winnerson 15 December 2018
Scoring chart The highest score each week is indicated in with a dagger (), while the lowest score each week is indicated in with a double-dagger ().
Color key:
+Strictly Come Dancing (series 16) - Weekly scores Couple Week 1 2 1+2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Stacey & Kevin 1st 24 20 44 32 33 35 36 32 33 39+4=43 38 39+36=75 39+36+39= Ashley & Pasha 2nd 35 32 36 36+7=43 38 36+40= 40+40+40= Faye & Giovanni 31 60 29 33 38 36 38 39+6= 37+39= 40+40+40= Joe & Dianne 27 31 58 26 26 29 35 34 32 38 35+5=40 36 29+30=59 39+39+38=116 Lauren & AJ 5th 25 22 47 20 25 24 29 31 34 23+1= 31+23= Charles & Karen 6th 25 25 50 25 25 36 25 28 35 38 30+3=33 Graeme & Oti 7th 22 15 37 31 26 29 21 29 31 32 24+2=26 Kate & Aljaž 8th 20 27 47 29 20 26 23 30 30 Danny & Amy 9th 27 28 55 28 27 30 Dr. Ranj & Janette 10th 27 24 51 20 27 25 27 Seann & Katya 11th 18 15 33 30 28 24 Vick & Graziano 12th 18 27 45 27 29 Katie & Gorka 13th 17 13 30 22 Lee & Nadiya 14th 22 26 48 15th Notes
Average chart This table only counts for dances scored on a traditional 40-point scale. Couple Rank byaverage Totalpoints Number ofdances Totalaverage Ashley & Pasha 1st 591 16 36.9 Faye & Giovanni 2nd 584 36.5 Stacey & Kevin 3rd 544 34.0 Joe & Dianne 4th 524 32.8 Charles & Karen 5th 327 11 29.7 Danny & Amy 6th 226 8 28.3 Lauren & AJ 7th 347 13 26.7 Graeme & Oti 8th 260 10 26.0 Kate & Aljaž 9th 225 9 25.0 Dr. Ranj & Janette 10th 170 7 24.3 Vick & Graziano 11th 121 5 24.2 Seann & Katya 12th 135 6 22.5 Lee & Nadiya 13th 67 3 22.3 Katie & Gorka 14th 70 4 17.5 Susannah & Anton 15th 24 2 12.0
Weekly scores Unless indicated otherwise, individual judges' scores in the charts below (given in parentheses) are listed in this order from left to right: Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas, Bruno Tonioli.
Week 1 Couples are listed in the order they performed. CoupleScoresDanceMusic Danny & Amy 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Foxtrot "Top Cat Theme" — Hoyt Curtin Kate & Aljaž 20 (4, 6, 4, 6) Cha-cha-cha "Kiss" — Art of Noise, feat. Tom Jones Lauren & AJ 25 (6, 6, 6, 7) Waltz "Kissing You" — Des'ree Seann & Katya 18 (3, 5, 4, 6) Tango "SexyBack" — Justin Timberlake Vick & Graziano 18 (3, 5, 4, 6) Jive "Feel It Still" — Portugal. The Man Susannah & Anton 12 (1, 4, 3, 4) Samba "Tico Tico" — Carmen Miranda Charles & Karen 25 (6, 6, 6, 7) Cha-cha-cha "Ain't No Love (Ain't No Use)" — Sub Sub, feat. Melanie Williams Ashley & Pasha 29 (7, 8, 7, 7) Viennese waltz "Perfect" — Ed Sheeran, feat. Beyoncé Dr. Ranj & Janette 27 (6, 6, 8, 7) Cha-cha-cha "How Will I Know" — Whitney Houston Katie & Gorka 17 (4, 4, 4, 5) Waltz "When We Were Young" — Adele Graeme & Oti 22 (5, 6, 6, 5) Samba "Soul Limbo" — Booker T. & the M.G.'s Stacey & Kevin 24 (6, 6, 6, 6) Quickstep "Dancing" — Kylie Minogue Lee & Nadiya 22 (4, 6, 6, 6) Waltz "Take It to the Limit" — Eagles Joe & Dianne 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Jive "Take On Me" — A-ha Faye & Giovanni 29 (7, 8, 7, 7) Cha-cha-cha "Lullaby" — Sigala & Paloma Faith
Week 2 Musical guest: George Ezra — "Shotgun"
Couples are listed in the order they performed. CoupleScoresDanceMusicResult Stacey & Kevin 20 (4, 5, 5, 6) Cha-cha-cha "Came Here for Love" — Sigala & Ella Eyre Safe Charles & Karen 25 (5, 6, 7, 7) Quickstep "Sir Duke" — Stevie Wonder Safe Katie & Gorka 13 (2, 4, 3, 4) Paso doble "Confident" — Demi Lovato Safe Graeme & Oti 15 (3, 5, 3, 4) American Smooth "Try a Little Tenderness" — Otis Redding Safe Kate & Aljaž 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Tango "No Roots" — Alice Merton Safe Joe & Dianne 31 (7, 8, 8, 8) Charleston "Cotton Eye Joe" — Rednex Safe Susannah & Anton 12 (1, 4, 4, 3) Foxtrot "They Can't Take That Away from Me" — Frank Sinatra & Natalie Cole Eliminated Lee & Nadiya 26 (6, 7, 6, 7) Jive "Blue Suede Shoes" — Elvis Presley Bottom two Danny & Amy 28 (7, 7, 7, 7) Cha-cha-cha "Beggin'" — Madcon Safe Vick & Graziano 27 (7, 7, 6, 7) Waltz "Somewhere" — from West Side Story Safe Dr. Ranj & Janette 24 (5, 6, 7, 6) Salsa "Fireball" — Pitbull, feat. John Ryan Safe Faye & Giovanni 31 (8, 8, 7, 8) Viennese waltz "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" — Seal Safe Lauren & AJ 22 (5, 6, 5, 6) Charleston "New Rules" — Postmodern Jukebox Safe Seann & Katya 15 (2, 4, 4, 5) Jive "I'm Still Standing" — Elton John Safe Ashley & Pasha Cha-cha-cha "Boogie Wonderland" — Earth, Wind & Fire with The Emotions Safe Judges' votes to save Revel Horwood: Lee & Nadiya Bussell: Lee & Nadiya Tonioli: Lee & Nadiya Ballas: Did not vote, but would have voted to save Lee & Nadiya
Week 3: Movie Week Musical guest: Gladys Knight — "Licence to Kill"
Couples are listed in the order they performed. CoupleScoresDanceMusicFilmResult Vick & Graziano 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Salsa "Take a Chance on Me" Mamma Mia! Safe Dr. Ranj & Janette 20 (4, 5, 5, 6) Quickstep "Prince Ali" Aladdin Safe Lee & Nadiya 19 (3, 5, 5, 6) Cha-cha-cha "The Power of Love"Back to the Future Eliminated Kate & Aljaž 29 (6, 7, 8, 8) Foxtrot "Why Don't You Do Right?" Who Framed Roger Rabbit Safe Stacey & Kevin 32 (8, 8, 8, 8) Jive "Happy" Despicable Me 2 Safe Joe & Dianne 26 (6, 7, 6, 7) American Smooth "Breaking Free" High School Musical Safe Graeme & Oti 31 (7, 8, 8, 8) Charleston "Spider-Man Theme" Spider-Man Safe Ashley & Pasha 35 (8, 9, 9, 9) Salsa "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" Dirty Dancing Safe Katie & Gorka 22 (5, 5, 6, 6) Foxtrot "City of Stars" La La Land Safe Seann & Katya 30 (7, 7, 8, 8) Paso doble "Clubbed to Death" The Matrix Safe Lauren & AJ 20 (4, 5, 5, 6) Cha-cha-cha "Fame" Fame Safe Charles & Karen 25 (6, 6, 6, 7) American Smooth "Up Where We Belong" An Officer and a Gentleman Bottom two Faye & Giovanni 36 (9, 9, 9, 9) Quickstep "You're the One That I Want" Grease Safe Danny & Amy 28 (6, 7, 7, 8) Paso doble "The Greatest Show"The Greatest Showman Safe Judges' votes to save Revel Horwood: Charles & Karen Bussell: Charles & Karen Tonioli: Charles & Karen Ballas: Did not vote, but would have voted to save Lee & Nadiya
Week 4 Musical guests: Backstreet Boys — "Larger than Life", "I Want It That Way" & "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)"
Couples are listed in the order they performed. CoupleScoresDanceMusicResult Joe & Dianne 26 (5, 7, 7, 7) Cha-cha-cha "Just Got Paid" — Sigala, Ella Eyre & Meghan Trainor, feat. French Montana Safe Vick & Graziano 29 (7, 7, 7, 8) Quickstep "You Can't Hurry Love" — The Supremes Safe Danny & Amy 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Viennese waltz "I've Gotta Be Me" — Sammy Davis Jr. Safe Faye & Giovanni 29 (7, 7, 7, 8) Rumba "Chandelier" — Sia Safe Katie & Gorka 18 (3, 5, 5, 5) Jive "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" — Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers Eliminated Charles & Karen 25 (6, 6, 6, 7) Salsa "Use It Up and Wear It Out" — Odyssey Bottom two Lauren & AJ 25 (6, 6, 6, 7) Quickstep "If You're Over Me" — Years & Years Safe Dr. Ranj & Janette 27 (6, 7, 7, 7) Paso doble "Canción del Mariachi" — Los Lobos Safe Kate & Aljaž 20 (4, 5, 5, 6) Samba "Africa" — Toto Safe Graeme & Oti 26 (5, 7, 7, 7) Jive "Don't Stop Me Now" — Queen Safe Ashley & Pasha 32 (8, 8, 8, 8) Tango "Look What You Made Me Do" — Taylor Swift Safe Seann & Katya 28 (6, 7, 8, 7) Charleston "Bills" — LunchMoney Lewis Safe Stacey & Kevin Foxtrot "Hi Ho Silver Lining" — Jeff Beck Safe Judges' votes to save Revel Horwood: Charles & Karen Bussell: Charles & Karen Tonioli: Charles & Karen Ballas: Did not vote, but would have voted to save Charles & Karen
Week 5 Individual judges' scores in the chart below (given in parentheses) are listed in this order from left to right: Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas, Alfonso Ribeiro.
Musical guest: Paloma Faith — "Loyal"
Actor Alfonso Ribeiro filled in as a guest judge while Bruno Tonioli was unavailable while filming for Dancing with the Stars.
Couples are listed in the order they performed.