Numerous devotees of Strictly Come Dancing will recognise that the BBC programme has been laden with controversy this year surrounding the presenting reshuffle.
After the exit of established hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman last year, the BBC unveiled a refreshed trio of Strictly presenters, comprising Emma Willis, comedian Josh Widdicombe, and professional dancer Johannes Radebe.
Nevertheless, the new configuration has attracted fierce public examination and split the audience.
Audiences and television commentators have criticised Widdicombe's position on the main floor beside Willis, contending his stand-up comedy approach and scripted jokes disrupt the programme's rhythm.
Numerous supporters on social media have proposed Willis possesses sufficient capability to present the main floor independently, pressing producers to relocate Josh upstairs.
Given this context, some may find it unsurprising that viewing figures for Strictly have nosedived this year.
Audience numbers for last Saturday's broadcast on October 10 tumbled to 5.0 million viewers (44% share), down from 5.1 million during Movie Week the previous week and 6.31 million for the equivalent show last year.
Meanwhile, figures for Sunday's results programme on October 11 plunged dramatically to approximately 4.8 million viewers, representing a substantial fall from the 6.1 million recorded during the same week in 2025.
Industry observers and supporters have linked the ongoing deterioration to various elements, including conflicting responses to the new presenting arrangement and irritation over Sunday result spoilers emerging online before transmission. However, not everyone is prepared to abandon Strictly just yet.
After popular X account Super TV published the ratings data on the platform, numerous viewers shared the identical three-word response to the figures, declaring they were 'sticking with it'.
One enthusiast posted: "I'm sticking with Strictly, I'm not listening to all the doom mongers on here who want it to fail."
While another concurred: "I look forward to watching Strictly Come Dancing evening Saturday night no matter what the viewing figures are."
A third contributed: "I am sticking with Strictly but Josh Widdicombe &andall the dancers feeling a bit "samey" is putting me off a bit."
While a fourth commented: "The hosts are actually good this year. Emma is the best host they have ever had."
Despite this, some individuals acknowledged they had stopped watching the programme, as one person simply stated: "Bye bye Strictly."
While another remarked: "We used to be super fans, but largely due to the dumbing down of the show, we just watch the results show with remote in hand to skip any unwelcome 'noise!' It's really that poor now!"
A third added: "The programme is just too long. We had an unexpected drama which meant we missed it, if you don't catch up then there are spoilers to avoid so we just didn't bother. I fast forwarded through the results programme to see who left and that was it."
BBC spokespeople emphasise that standard overnight ratings do not account for catch-up viewing via BBC iPlayer and on-demand streaming, where a growing proportion of the audience tunes into the programme.
Are you still watching Strictly this year? Let us know in the comments section.
Strictly Come Dancing Week 4 results show airs at 7:10pm this Sunday, 18 October 2026, on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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