Strictly's Nick Knowles: 'It's important people are heard'

Strictly Come Dancing contestant Nick Knowles has said it is "important" that complaints are listened to, aft a fig of celebrities made claims astir their attraction connected the show.

The presenter of DIY SOS is 1 of 15 celebrated faces taking portion successful the caller series, which kicks disconnected aboriginal this month.

The deed BBC amusement is present successful its 20th year, but it has faced a rocky fewer months with Amanda Abbington and Zara McDermott among those speaking up astir their experiences.

"It's important that radical are listened to, and they person been, truthful that seems to maine each good," Knowles said.

Other personage contestants, speaking astatine a property lawsuit for the caller series, praised the caller measures that person been introduced to bolster payment connected the amusement pursuing the allegations.

The caller steps, outlined by the BBC successful July, see placing chaperones successful each aboriginal rehearsals.

Eighties popstar Toyah Willcox said the Strictly squad had "done perfectly everything" to marque this bid a bully acquisition for them.

"We person radical with america each the time," she told journalists astatine Strictly's property launch. "We person an openness that we tin speech instantly if we person immoderate concerns."

Willcox, who is known for hits including I Want to Be Free, added: "I can't carnivore the thought of anyone suffering thing but we've each travel into this knowing what's expected of us, and it is 100% commitment."

Former Love Islander Tasha Ghouri agreed, saying it was "about moving forward".

"It's astir our ain experiences really," she added.

Meanwhile, Chris McCausland, who is the show's archetypal unsighted contestant, said helium signed up for Strictly earlier immoderate of the allegations had deed the news.

He welcomed the determination to present chaperones, joking: "It's an other idiosyncratic to amusement maine wherever the toilet is."

The 2024 line-up was announced past month, with different celebrities including histrion and vocalist Shayne Ward, and Sam Quek, an Olympic hockey subordinate and TV presenter.

This year's line-up besides includes 2 world TV amusement stars, Ghouri and Pete Wicks from The Only Way Is Essex, arsenic Strictly continues to effort and pull younger audiences.

Training is presently nether way, and Quek said it was "going well" though added it had been astatine times been "overwhelming" for her.

"It's the archetypal clip I've had caput blanks, you cognize erstwhile you're trying to retrieve thing and you deliberation you've got the routine, and past each of a abrupt you spell blank," she said.

"I'm wholly retired of my comfortableness zone," said Paul Merson, a erstwhile nonrecreational footballer and manager who present works arsenic a pundit for Sky Sports.

"There person been a mates of dances contiguous which are hard, I'm not going to lie," helium added.

McCausland said that due to the fact that helium can't spot his chap contestants dancing, he'd assumed everyone other was "amazing" and helium was the lone 1 making mistakes.

"I've asked people, tin you fto maine cognize everyone else's faults," helium joked.

Other contestants this twelvemonth see three-time Olympic champion Tom Dean, who accidentally revealed his participation during an interrogation past period earlier the authoritative announcement.

"I'd virtually gotten retired of the excavation 1 minute, earlier racing successful the Olympic final... and past I got fired that Strictly question," helium said.

"I wasn't truly 100% dialled successful connected what I should beryllium saying. Little gaffe of the tongue."

He described Strictly grooming truthful acold arsenic "intense" but "a batch much fun" than preparing for the Olympics. "But you're inactive grooming hard, you've inactive got a contention you're trying to enactment for, and you privation to bash well."

The caller bid of Strictly follows a tempest of contention implicit the experiences of immoderate contestants and erstwhile unit connected the BBC show.

An investigation, launched by the BBC pursuing allegations made astir Giovanni Pernice by erstwhile creation spouse Amanda Abbington, volition reportedly reason soon.

Pernice has denied immoderate allegations of abusive oregon threatening behaviour. He volition not beryllium returning for the show's bid this year.

Another nonrecreational dancer, Graziano Di Prima, has besides near the show.

His spokesperson admitted to BBC News that Di Prima had kicked his spouse Zara McDermott successful a rehearsal past year.

Last month, a BBC News investigation heard allegations of a "toxic culture" from immoderate erstwhile inferior unit connected the show, though different workers told a affirmative communicative of dancers and unit who were benignant and respectful to them.

Addressing the allegations, caller contestant JB Gill said they person not changed his cognition of the show.

"A batch of those incidents would've been standalone incidents," the JLS vocalist said.

"While of people successful those situations they each person their ain validity, I conscionable consciousness similar we're going into it, it's a unsocial situation," helium said.

"And I deliberation particularly fixed what's happened successful the past, the show's decidedly enactment steps successful spot present to hopefully debar immoderate further situations similar that."

The vocalist took portion successful the Strictly Christmas peculiar implicit a decennary ago, wherever helium was crowned victor aft dancing a jive.

But helium said helium was looking guardant to "getting to grips" with different creation routines specified arsenic ballroom and Latin.

"I'm precise overmuch a blank canvas and looking guardant to getting stuck in."

This bid of Strictly has been billed as the astir accessible yet, with unrecorded signing for the archetypal clip disposable connected BBC iPlayer and reddish button.

Ghouri, who was calved deaf and campaigns to rise consciousness for the deaf community, is the 2nd deaf contestant to creation connected the show, pursuing successful the footsteps of glitterball trophy winner, Rose Ayling-Ellis.

She called the determination to present unrecorded signing "amazing" and said it was portion of what makes Strictly "so special".

"And you've got Chris arsenic well, Chris is perfectly smashing it and making maine smile," she said.

"It's truthful large that they're moving truthful hard to marque it accessible for everyone. That's what it should beryllium about, making everyone consciousness included and inclusive."

The Strictly Come Dancing 2024 motorboat amusement volition aerial connected Saturday 14 September astatine 19:20 connected BBC One & BBC iPlayer.