Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour 2026 kicks off in Birmingham on January 23 with Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke and Craig Revel Horwood as judges – but Motsi Mabuse does not appear to be taking part

The dates for the upcoming Strictly Come Dancing live tour have been revealed, with organisers promising a spectacle “more dazzling than ever before”. However, one judge will be noticeably absent.

Judges Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke and Craig Revel Horwood are set to reunite on the panel, while professional dancer Janette Manrara will return as the host of the tour.

Motsi Mabuse, however, seems to be sitting out this tour. The roster of celebrities and professional dancers participating in the 30-show tour will be announced shortly.

The tour is set to commence in Birmingham on 23 January, making its way through Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, Liverpool, Glasgow and Nottingham, before wrapping up at London’s O2 on 15 February.

Under the direction of Revel Horwood, the show promises two hours of spectacular dance routines, including group performances, accompanied by live music from the BBC Strictly band, reports the Mirror.

While the three judges will provide their critiques at each show, it’s ultimately the audience who will decide the winner through nightly voting.

Head judge Ballas expressed her excitement, stating: “The Strictly live tour is always the best way to start the new year. I can’t wait for 2026 to be back on the road with Anton and Craig and bring the magic of Strictly to fans across the country. Roll on January.”

Du Beke revealed: “I’m back for my fourth Strictly tour and it honestly just keeps getting better and better. Sitting behind the judges’ desk and watching the excitement from the audience night after night is just magical and, as I’ve said before, we love it just as much as they do. I’m very excited to see what Craig has planned for next year.”

Revel Horwood added: “If you love the BBC series, then you will love the Strictly live tour. We bring all the glitz, glamour and gorgeousness to an arena near you, so fans can enjoy the spectacle of the TV show and their favourite celebrities and dancers up-close and personal. It’s a fab-u-lous night out for the whole family to enjoy.”

Karen Carney might be the bookies’ favourite to lift the glitterball this weekend but she will not be taking part in the live stadium tour in the New Year – and neither will fellow finalist Amber Davies.

When the tour launches on 23 January there will also be no sign of semi-finalist Balvinder Sopal – the EastEnder who went out this weekend and has the dubious honour of holding the record for the most dance-offs ever completed in the show’s history. And neither will ER star Alex Kingston, who made it all the way to week ten before being voted off while harbouring an injury.

But there was good news for fans of ex-Emmerdale star Lewis Cope – who caused a “fix” uproar when he went out with partner Katya Jones in the quarter final – because the pair of them have been signed for the live tour, along with finalists George Clarke and Alexis Warr, plus soccer star Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Lauren Oakley, who left the competition in week five.

Fans need to be careful which show they book for however, as Lewis will miss eight performances due to a prior commitment and George will miss 11 shows for the same reason. And while Amber is not available at the start of 2026 because she is appearing in Legally Blonde The Musical, her partner Nikita Kuzmin will take part with his celebrity from 2023: Layton Williams.

The four new couples will join those already announced, who are Harry Aikines-Aryeetey and Karen Hauer, Ellie Goldstein and Vito Coppola plus Vicky Pattison and her pro Kai Widdrington. Drag star La Voix, who was forced to pull out last month because of injury, is also recovered and will dance with her partner Aljaž Škorjanec.

One Strictly expert said: “If Karen triumphs at the weekend she’ll be the second winner to not make the tour, following on from Chris McCausland last year, who was unable to make it because he had his own stand-up tour starting. But there are plenty of fan favourites in there to keep people happy – Vicky and Lewis both sparked outcries when they left the BBC show so it’s good that people will get another chance to see them in action.”

Layton Williams couldn’t believe his luck, admitting: “It’s an honour to be asked back and able to do this twice.” His return in the new guest slot was set after his appearance in Blackpool last month, with organisers promising that he and Nikita would perform as part of the alumni dance, the “some of their most-loved routines” for the arena audiences.

– For ticket information, go to StrictlyComeDancingLive.com