Strictly favourite just dropped biggest hint yet she’s replacing Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman

Strictly Come Dancing fans are convinced they’ve sussed out the identity of one of Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman’s replacements.

Earlier this series, the hosting duo stunned the nation by announcing this would be their last time fronting the iconic BBC dance show.

In the weeks since, speculation has been ablaze around who could take their place, with names such as Alan Carr and Rylan Clark in the mix, while Alex Jones and Bradley Walsh are reportedly the favourites.

However, there appears to have been a key development, with another front-runner dropping her biggest clue yet that she’ll be taking on the job in 2026.

This weekend, broadcasting stalwart Zoe Ball revealed that she is leaving her role as presenter of her BBC Radio 2 show.

Speaking on the show, the 55-year-old said Emma Willis would be her successor.

‘I have loved being betwixt my dear friends Romesh (Ranganathan) and Rylan, and you know, I love you all to bits, but I’m not disappearing completely,’ she told listeners.

‘Obviously, it’ll be Christmas Crooners, and I’m doing an Eras show in the new year; more on that later.

‘But I am thrilled to tell you that you will be in the safest of hands, because there is a superwoman who is no stranger to you all, but this does mean that she will officially become a member of the Radio 2 family.

‘You’ll have loved her on The Voice, The Circle, Big Brother, Cooking With The Stars, Love Is Blind, and Delivering Babies. She’s a gorgeous lass, so welcome to the BBC Radio 2 family and Saturday afternoons, Emma Willis.’

Beloved presenter Emma, 49, later took to Instagram to declare it an ‘honour’ to take over from the ‘legendary’ Zoe.

‘It’s really exciting, and it’s quite nerve-racking as well, because you’ve got—you always have fantastic boots and shoes, but they are very big boots and shoes to step into, Zoe Ball,’ she also said of joining the station.

The news comes after Zoe bowed out of her Breakfast Show after nearly six years at the helm, before returning to Radio 2 just over four months later for the brief stint in her 1pm to 3pm slot on Saturdays.

Upon learning that the former Strictly: It Takes Two host – who fronted the spin-off on BBC Two from 2011 to 2021 – would be stepping down from her afternoons on the airwaves, it gave Strictly fans food for thought.

Taking to the comments section of the broadcaster’s post, @nicolachinnock wrote: ‘I am hoping so much that Zoe is leaving to become one of the new SCD hosts🙏🙏🙏🙏Pleeeeease🤞🤞🤞🤞’

‘Congratulations, Emma! Does this mean that Zoe will be Strictly’s new presenter?? Hope so!’, echoed @lizlovesmarshmallows.

‘Ooo I hope this is because Zoe needs to be free on Saturdays for a certain dancing show 🪩 💃🏻 🤞🏻’, @sophiebishbish mused.

@jenny_9388 joined in with the chatter, saying Zoe is ‘surely’ now a dead cert for the Strictly gig.

@suziee.wooziee added that she’d be ‘great’ as a replacement, while @stephwilson49 wished Zoe ‘good luck on her new projects’.

Zoe’s announcement comes after Strictly reportedly assembled a list of 10 showbiz contenders to take over from Tess and Claudia next year.

Names on the list include The Chase host Bradley and The One Show’s Alex, as well as Celebrity Traitors champ Alan and Dating Naked host Rylan.

Zoe – who has already confirmed her interest – is also a noticeable feature, as is Holly Willoughby, who has been said to be plotting a TV comeback for a while.

Alison Hammond, Rob Rinder, and Amanda Holden are on the shortlist too, as is former Strictly contestant Angela Scanlon.

A TV insider added to The Sun that the BBC will hold a chemistry day to test out possible pairings.

The source told the publication: ‘They will go to a studio and be put into different pairs to see who works together best.

‘It could be two women or two men paired, or a mix. They will ultimately choose whoever has the best chemistry in each partnership.’

When announcing the news of their departure, Tess and Claudia – who have hosted Strictly as a duo since 2014 – said it had been an ‘absolute dream’ role.

‘We were always going to leave together, and now feels like the right time,’ they told loyal viewers, who are itching to find out who will take the baton from them next.

Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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