Final Strictly Come Dancing star announced as fans fume over 'underwhelming' line-up

Strictly Come Dancing has announced its final celebrity that will be taking to the BBC show's dance floor later on this year for the upcoming series.

Game of Thrones actor Kristian Nairn is the 15th name that has been released this morning. The star is best known for having appeared on the HBO fantasy series Hodor, and also works as a DJ, but will now be preparing to take to the dancefloor and put his footwork to the test for viewers and judges Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke as the fan favourite returns for its 23rd series.

He said: "This will be a huge challenge for me physically, but I’m ready to rise to it! It’s a surreal and wonderful opportunity to shed one of my left feet." It comes after a Strictly Come Dancing star pulls out of show as he makes career announcement.

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This year, the long-running dance programme will feature a whole host of stars like Geordie Shore legend Vicky Pattison, as well as Neighbours star Stefan Dennis, but some viewers rushed to X to express their disappointment some of the contestants now that the full line-up has been revealed.

One fan wrote on X: "Anyone else completely and utterly underwhelmed by this year's #Strictly line up?" and another joked: "[To] the people comment ‘who?’ under strictly’s celebrity announcements," and responded: "Nobody does, baby!"

Another fan vented: "I started out optimistic about the Strictly line-up... but now... yeah. Not the best, is it? I'll still watch it, of course, but there's no stand out contestants for me really."

Over the course of the series, the programme has featured the likes of Girls Aloud singer Kimberley Walsh, Spice Girl Emma Bunton and Misteeq's Alesha Dixon, but one fan in particular took umbrage over the fact that there is no one like them this time around. They wrote: "Obviously I love Strictly but this has got to be the naffest line up ever?! Literally not one single ‘big’ name like where are the pop girls or something."

Former Lioness footballer Karen Carney was announced its 14th contestant in the 2025 line-up, having played for Chelsea, Arsenal, Birmingham City and England during her footballing career.

Shortly after that, Ross King, best known as a showbiz guru on Lorraine, revealed he will be taking part this year as well.

The countdown to Strictly is officially on, with the cast being revealed by the BBC throughout the week. Yesterday, three names were announced to be taking on the competition.

The Apprentice star and social media personality Thomas Skinner will be heading to the ballroom this year, with the dad-of-three being revealed on Hits Radio.

Earlier in the week, Tom, 34, partied with US Vice President JD Vance at a barbecue in the Cotswolds during his visit to the UK. He described the night as "once in a lifetime", posting a picture of himself with Vance to social media.

Speaking about joining Strictly, Tom said: "I’m beyond excited to be joining Strictly Come Dancing. I’ve tackled the boardroom and some big breakfasts in my time, but stepping on to the dance floor under that glitter ball is next level stuff.

“I’ve never danced in my life other than at weddings, but I’m ready to graft and of course have a laugh. Bring on the sequins, sambas and, most importantly, the bosh to the ballroom.”

Meanwhile, Vicki Pattison - who previously won I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! - was announced on ITV's This Morning yesterday. She said: "I’m absolutely buzzing to be part of this year’s Strictly!"

The first contestant announced to be joining Strictly was Gladiators star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, also known as Nitro. The former Olympic athlete, who competed in last year's Christmas special, was revealed as a contestant during an episode of Newsround on Monday.

Dani Dyer, daughter of EastEnders star Danny Dyer who shot to fame when she won Love Island, was the second celebrity confirmed for the new series. The reality TV star shared the news on The One Show on Monday night, with her one of three contestants who appeared on the show that evening.

Actor Alex Kingston, known for her roles on shows such as Doctor Who and ER, was unveiled as the third celebrity for the new series. She was the second contestant to be interviewed on The One Show earlier this week.

Footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was later named as this year's fourth contestant. He was the third and final participant revealed on Monday. Soap star Balvinder Sopal, known for her role as Suki Panesar-Unwin on EastEnders, was then the fifth contestant to be revealed as part of the line-up.

It was then announced that TikTok star George Clarke will be competing on the new series of Strictly too, and then RuPaul's Drag Race UK runner-up La Voix, also known as Christopher Dennis, was unveiled as the seventh celebrity taking part.

The Apprentice star Tom Skinner has also been given a spot on the dancefloor, as has actress and model Ellie Goldstein, and rugby star Chris Robshaw will also be taking part.

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