‘Strictly Come Dancing’ professional Neil Jones has revealed that, for the third year in a row, he won’t be partnered with a celebrity contestant in the upcoming series.
Neil joined the show in 2016, alongside his wife Katya Jones, who won the show last year with celeb partner Joe McFadden.
In that time, Neil has never taken part in the competition side of ‘Strictly’, instead appearing only in group performances.
After reports that this would be his year to finally compete, following the departure of regular pro Brendan Cole, Neil has now set the record straight, telling his Twitter followers: “There’s been a few rumours swirling around, whether or not I’ll have a partner. Unfortunately, I won’t be paired up this series.
“But do not worry, because I’m still going to be there every single week in all the group numbers, you’re going to see me in the music acts, in ‘It Takes Two’, which I love.”
He added: “I’m really really happy to be part of such a great show and I just wanted to say to everyone, thank you so much for all of your kind words and your support.”
It was ‘Strictly’ announcer Alan Dedicoat who previously told The Sun that Neil would be partnered with a celeb, suggesting earlier this month he was “interested to see how he does”.
For this year’s series, the show will be getting three brand new professionals, in the form of Graziano Di Prima, Luba Mushtuk and Johannes Radebe.
This year’s ‘Strictly’ launch, in which the celebrities find out who they’ll be dancing with for the duration of the series, has now been confirmed to be airing on Saturday 8 September, while the musical line-up for the show has also been announced.