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Daily Record
Daily Record
Entertainment
Paul T Smith

Strictly Come Dancing's launch this weekend in doubt after Queen's death

The launch of Strictly Come Dancing is in doubt this weekend following the death of the Queen - with fans are still waiting to hear if the hit BBC show will kick off on Saturday.

As it stands, the BBC is only issuing its TV schedule a day in advance, with many changes being made following Her Majesty's death.

There's said to be a "50/50" chance of the launch episode airing.

TV Zone's Twitter page said today: "For everybody asking: It's still 50/50 as to whether #Strictly will air next weekend. The question the BBC will be weighing up is whether it's appropriate to air it on the bank holiday weekend of the funeral and period of national mourning.

"Two most likely scenarios if the launch show does NOT air next weekend: a) Launch show airs on Sat 24th Sept. Live shows begin on Sat 1st Oct (series will be a week shorter than planned). b) Launch shows airs on Fri 23rd Sept. Live shows begin on Sat 24th Sept as planned."

Just some of the celebs taking part in 2022 (BBC)

The BBC has said it is only confirming schedules for today and tomorrow.

However, with the Queen's funeral due to take place on September 19, many fans think Strictly's launch is looking unlikely for next weekend.

One tweeted: “Strictly doesn't start airing live until the 24th, but next Saturday's launch episode will definitely be cancelled."

Another said: "It's possible they could instead air the launch episode on the Friday night (23rd) before the first live show the following evening.”

While a third commented: “More likely they'll just delay the first episode by a week, then the celebs will all compete properly the week after that.”

The pre-recorded Strictly Come Dancing launch episode, which sees the celebrity stars matched up with their professional dancing partners, was set to air on Saturday, September 17.

However, the UK has entered a national period of mourning stretching for 17 days, after Her Majesty's death at the age of 96.

Several broadcasters have switched up their schedules since the sad news - with the BBC pulling several shows and moving others to a different channel.

The broadcaster has been airing national and regional news programmes between shows including Picturing Elizabeth: Her Life In Images, Elizabeth: The Unseen Queen, and When The Queen Spoke To The Nation.

A special edition of The One Show: Our Queen Remembered, aired last night.

Tonight BBC One will see special editions of Songs Of Praise, Countryfile, and Antiques Roadshow.

She played the tough but fair headmistress Bridget McClusky for a decade until requesting she was written out so she could pursue other roles.

Her other credits included Heartbeat, Holby City and Father Brown, and in 2013 she was cast as the mother of Welsh comic Greg Davies’ character in Channel 4 comedy Man Down.

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