Strictly Come Dancing (series 16)


Strictly Come Dancing returned for its sixteenth series with a launch show on 8 September 2018 on BBC One, and the first live show on 22 September. Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman returned as hosts, while Zoe Ball returned to host on BBC Two. Bruno Tonioli, Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell and Shirley Ballas returned as judges. On 20 October, actor Alfonso Ribeiro stood in as a guest judge to cover for Tonioli.
In this series, three new dance styles were introduced as part of a new category called "couple's choice", giving a total of 18 dance styles in the competition.
The winners were Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton, becoming the seventh pair of winners to have never achieved a perfect score. Runners-up Ashley Roberts and Faye Tozer matched Caroline Flack's record in 2014 of scoring perfect 40s for all three dances in the final. Roberts also set a record of achieving the most 40s during a series, with five. Roberts also matched Alexandra Burke’s record of the most 10s during the series, with 32. Tozer also set the record of most consecutive ‘10’ scoring dances, with 11.
The series was Bussell's last series as a judge, with Motsi Mabuse later announced as her replacement. It was also the last series to feature Pasha Kovalev who was replaced by Nancy Xu.

Professional dancers

On 30 May 2018, the list of professionals returning for the sixteenth series was revealed. Professionals from the last series who did not return included Series 1 winner Brendan Cole and Chloe Hewitt. Graziano Di Prima, Johannes Radebe and Luba Mushtuk replaced them. As in the last two series, Neil Jones did not have a celebrity partner. Mushtuk and Radebe also did not have celebrity partners, however, Di Prima did.

Couples

On 13 August 2018, the first three celebrities announced to be participating in the series were Katie Piper, Faye Tozer and Danny John-Jules. Celebrity reveals continued across that month, before concluding on 21 August on Good Morning Britain.
CelebrityKnown forProfessional partnerStatus
Susannah ConstantineTelevision presenter & fashion journalistAnton du BekeEliminated 1st
on 30 September 2018
Lee RyanBlue singer & former EastEnders actorNadiya BychkovaEliminated 2nd
on 7 October 2018
Katie PiperPhilanthropist & television presenterGorka MárquezEliminated 3rd
on 14 October 2018
Vick HopeCapital FM presenter & DJGraziano Di PrimaEliminated 4th
on 21 October 2018
Seann WalshStand-up comedianKatya JonesEliminated 5th
on 28 October 2018
Dr. Ranj SinghThis Morning & CBeebies presenterJanette ManraraEliminated 6th
on 4 November 2018
Danny John-JulesStage & screen actorAmy DowdenEliminated 7th
on 11 November 2018
Kate SilvertonBBC News presenter & journalistAljaž SkorjanecEliminated 8th
on 18 November 2018
Graeme SwannFormer England cricketerOti MabuseEliminated 9th
on 25 November 2018
Charles VennCasualty actorKaren CliftonEliminated 10th
on 2 December 2018
Lauren SteadmanParalympic swimmer & paratriathleteAJ PritchardEliminated 11th
on 9 December 2018
Ashley RobertsFormer The Pussycat Dolls singerPasha KovalevRunners-up
on 15 December 2018
Faye TozerSteps singerGiovanni PerniceRunners-up
on 15 December 2018
Joe SuggYouTube personality & authorDianne BuswellRunners-up
on 15 December 2018
Stacey DooleyInvestigative journalistKevin CliftonWinners
on 15 December 2018

Scoring chart

Average scores table

This table only counts for dances scored on a traditional 40-points scale. The extra points from the Lindy-Hop-a-Thon in Week 10 have been omitted.
Rank by
average		PlaceCoupleTotal
points		Number of
dances		Total
average
12Ashley & Pasha5911636.9
22Faye & Giovanni5841636.5
31Stacey & Kevin5441634.0
42Joe & Dianne5241632.8
56Charles & Karen3271129.7
69Danny & Amy226828.3
75Lauren & AJ3471326.7
87Graeme & Oti2601026.0
98Kate & Aljaž225925.0
1010Dr. Ranj & Janette170724.3
1112Vick & Graziano121524.2
1211Seann & Katya135622.5
1314Lee & Nadiya67322.3
1413Katie & Gorka70417.5
1515Susannah & Anton24212.0

Highest and lowest scoring performances of the series

The highest and lowest performances in each dance according to the judges' scale are as follows.
DanceCelebrityHighest scoreCelebrityLowest score
American SmoothAshley Roberts40Graeme Swann15
Argentine TangoFaye Tozer39Kate Silverton23
Cha-Cha-ChaAshley Roberts32Lee Ryan19
CharlestonFaye Tozer
Ashley Roberts		40Lauren Steadman22
ContemporaryAshley Roberts39Lauren Steadman24
FoxtrotAshley Roberts
Stacey Dooley		39Susannah Constantine12
JazzFaye Tozer40Graeme Swann32
JiveAshley Roberts40Seann Walsh15
Lindy Hop-a-thonAshley Roberts7Lauren Steadman1
Paso DobleStacey Dooley
Joe Sugg		39Katie Piper13
QuickstepJoe Sugg
Ashley Roberts		38Dr. Ranj Singh20
RumbaAshley Roberts36Kate Silverton20
SalsaAshley Roberts40Lauren Steadman23
SambaCharles Venn38Susannah Constantine12
ShowdanceAshley Roberts
Faye Tozer		40Stacey Dooley36
StreetCharles Venn
Stacey Dooley		36Joe Sugg35
TangoFaye Tozer38Seann Walsh18
Viennese WaltzFaye Tozer40Seann Walsh20
WaltzFaye Tozer39Katie Piper17

Vick Hope & Danny John-Jules are the only celebrities not to land on this list

Couples' highest and lowest scoring dances

Weekly scores and songs

Unless indicated otherwise, individual judge's scores in the charts below are listed in this order from left to right: Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas, Bruno Tonioli.

Launch show

;Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusic
Danny & Amy27 Foxtrot"Top Cat Theme"—Hoyt Curtin
Kate & Aljaž20 Cha-Cha-Cha"Kiss"—Art of Noise feat. Tom Jones
Lauren & AJ25 Waltz"Kissing You"—Des'ree
Seann & Katya18 Tango"SexyBack"—Justin Timberlake
Vick & Graziano18 Jive"Feel It Still"—Portugal. The Man
Susannah & Anton12 Samba"Tico Tico"—Carmen Miranda
Charles & Karen25 Cha-Cha-Cha"Ain't No Love "—Sub Sub feat. Melanie Williams
Ashley & Pasha29 Viennese Waltz"Perfect"—Ed Sheeran feat. Beyoncé
Dr. Ranj & Janette27 Cha-Cha-Cha"How Will I Know"—Whitney Houston
Katie & Gorka17 Waltz"When We Were Young"—Adele
Graeme & Oti22 Samba"Soul Limbo"—Booker T. & the M.G.'s
Stacey & Kevin24 Quickstep"Dancing"—Kylie Minogue
Lee & Nadiya22 Waltz"Take It to the Limit"—Eagles
Joe & Dianne27 Jive"Take On Me"—A-ha
Faye & Giovanni29 Cha-Cha-Cha"Lullaby"—Sigala & Paloma Faith

Week 2

; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Stacey & Kevin20 Cha-Cha-Cha"Came Here for Love"—Sigala & Ella EyreSafe
Charles & Karen25 Quickstep"Sir Duke"—Stevie WonderSafe
Katie & Gorka13 Paso Doble"Confident"—Demi LovatoSafe
Graeme & Oti15 American Smooth"Try a Little Tenderness"—Otis ReddingSafe
Kate & Aljaž27 Tango"No Roots"—Alice MertonSafe
Joe & Dianne31 Charleston"Cotton Eye Joe"—RednexSafe
Susannah & Anton12 Foxtrot"They Can't Take That Away from Me"—Frank Sinatra & Natalie ColeEliminated
Lee & Nadiya26 Jive"Blue Suede Shoes"—Elvis PresleyBottom two
Danny & Amy28 Cha-Cha-Cha"Beggin'"—MadconSafe
Vick & Graziano27 Waltz"Somewhere"—from West Side StorySafe
Dr. Ranj & Janette24 Salsa"Fireball"—Pitbull feat. John RyanSafe
Faye & Giovanni31 Viennese Waltz"It's a Man's Man's Man's World"—SealSafe
Lauren & AJ22 Charleston"New Rules"—Postmodern JukeboxSafe
Seann & Katya15 Jive"I'm Still Standing"—Elton JohnSafe
Ashley & Pasha32 Cha-Cha-Cha"Boogie Wonderland"—Earth, Wind & Fire with The EmotionsSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Vick & Graziano27 Salsa"Take a Chance on Me"—from Mamma Mia!Safe
Dr. Ranj & Janette20 Quickstep"Prince Ali"—from AladdinSafe
Lee & Nadiya19 Cha-Cha-Cha"The Power of Love"—from Back to the FutureEliminated
Kate & Aljaž29 Foxtrot"Why Don't You Do Right?"—from Who Framed Roger RabbitSafe
Stacey & Kevin32 Jive"Happy"—from Despicable Me 2Safe
Joe & Dianne26 American Smooth"Breaking Free"—from High School MusicalSafe
Graeme & Oti31 Charleston"Spider-Man Theme"—from Spider-ManSafe
Ashley & Pasha35 Salsa" The Time of My Life"—from Dirty DancingSafe
Katie & Gorka22 Foxtrot"City of Stars"—from La La LandSafe
Seann & Katya30 Paso Doble"Clubbed to Death"—from The MatrixSafe
Lauren & AJ20 Cha-Cha-Cha"Fame"—from FameSafe
Charles & Karen25 American Smooth"Up Where We Belong"—from An Officer and a GentlemanBottom two
Faye & Giovanni36 Quickstep"You're the One That I Want"—from GreaseSafe
Danny & Amy28 Paso Doble"The Greatest Show"—from The Greatest ShowmanSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Joe & Dianne26 Cha-Cha-Cha"Just Got Paid"—Sigala, Ella Eyre & Meghan Trainor feat. French MontanaSafe
Vick & Graziano29 Quickstep"You Can't Hurry Love"—The SupremesSafe
Danny & Amy27 Viennese Waltz"I've Gotta Be Me"—Sammy Davis Jr.Safe
Faye & Giovanni29 Rumba"Chandelier"—SiaSafe
Katie & Gorka18 Jive"Why Do Fools Fall in Love"—Frankie Lymon & The TeenagersEliminated
Charles & Karen25 Salsa"Use It Up and Wear It Out"—OdysseyBottom two
Lauren & AJ25 Quickstep"If You're Over Me"—Years & YearsSafe
Dr. Ranj & Janette27 Paso Doble""—Los LobosSafe
Kate & Aljaž20 Samba"Africa"—TotoSafe
Graeme & Oti26 Jive"Don't Stop Me Now"—QueenSafe
Ashley & Pasha32 Tango"Look What You Made Me Do"—Taylor SwiftSafe
Seann & Katya28 Charleston"Bills"—LunchMoney LewisSafe
Stacey & Kevin33 Foxtrot"Hi Ho Silver Lining"—Jeff BeckSafe

;Judges' votes to save
Individual judge's scores given in the chart below are listed in this order from left to right: Craig Revel Horwood, Dame Darcey Bussell, Shirley Ballas, Alfonso Ribeiro.
;Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Dr. Ranj & Janette25 American Smooth"Wouldn't It Be Nice"—The Beach BoysSafe
Lauren & AJ24 Contemporary"Runnin' "—Naughty Boy feat. Beyoncé & Arrow BenjaminSafe
Graeme & Oti29 Tango"Roxanne"—The PoliceSafe
Ashley & Pasha36 Rumba"Something About the Way You Look Tonight"—Elton JohnSafe
Seann & Katya24 Quickstep"Lightning Bolt"—Jake BuggBottom two
Stacey & Kevin33 Samba"Tequila"—David Hirschfelder & The Bogo Pogo OrchestraSafe
Joe & Dianne29 Waltz"Rainbow Connection"—Sleeping at LastSafe
Vick & Graziano20 Cha-Cha-Cha"More than Friends"—James Hype feat. Kelli-LeighEliminated
Kate & Aljaž26 Viennese Waltz"Finally Mine"—Juliet RobertsSafe
Danny & Amy37 Jive"Flip, Flop and Fly"—Ellis HallSafe
Faye & Giovanni33 Foxtrot"Just the Way You Are"—Bruno MarsSafe
Charles & Karen36 Street"Get Up Offa That Thing"—James BrownSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Graeme & Oti21 Cha-Cha-Cha"Thriller"—Michael JacksonBottom two
Stacey & Kevin35 Tango"Doctor Who theme"—Ron GrainerSafe
Dr. Ranj & Janette20 Jive"Monster Mash"—Bobby "Boris" PickettSafe
Kate & Aljaž20 Rumba"Skin"—Rag'n'Bone ManSafe
Danny & Amy30 American Smooth"Spirit in the Sky"—Doctor and the MedicsSafe
Ashley & Pasha39 Charleston"Witch Doctor"—Don LangSafe
Seann & Katya20 Viennese Waltz"I Put a Spell on You"—Screamin' Jay HawkinsEliminated
Charles & Karen25 Jive"Time Warp"—from The Rocky Horror Picture ShowSafe
Faye & Giovanni39 Jazz"Fever"—Peggy LeeSafe
Joe & Dianne35 Foxtrot"Youngblood"—5 Seconds of SummerSafe
Lauren & AJ29 Paso Doble"Poison"—Nicole ScherzingerSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Lauren & AJ31 Jive"Girlfriend"—Avril LavigneSafe
Graeme & Oti29 Waltz"The Last Waltz"—Engelbert HumperdinckSafe
Kate & Aljaž23 Argentine Tango"Assassin's Tango"—John PowellSafe
Dr. Ranj & Janette27 Samba"Freedom! '90"—George MichaelEliminated
Stacey & Kevin36 Street"Empire State of Mind Broken Down"—Alicia KeysSafe
Danny & Amy22 Quickstep"Freedom"—Pharrell WilliamsSafe
Ashley & Pasha39 Foxtrot"Orange Colored Sky"—Natalie ColeSafe
Faye & Giovanni38 Tango"Call Me"—BlondieSafe
Charles & Karen28 Viennese Waltz"Piano Man"—Billy JoelBottom two
Joe & Dianne34 Paso Doble"Pompeii"—BastilleSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Kate & Aljaž30 Quickstep"I Want You to Want Me"—Letters to CleoSafe
Danny & Amy27 Samba"Feels Like Home"—Sigala feat. Fuse ODG, Sean Paul & Kent JonesEliminated
Ashley & Pasha39 Contemporary"Unsteady"—X AmbassadorsSafe
Graeme & Oti31 Salsa"Follow the Leader"—:nl:The Soca Boys|The Soca BoysBottom two
Faye & Giovanni36 Jive"Reet Petite"—Jackie WilsonSafe
Stacey & Kevin32 Waltz"Moon River"—Audrey HepburnSafe
Joe & Dianne32 Samba"MMMBop"—HansonSafe
Lauren & AJ34 Viennese Waltz"You Are the Reason"—Calum Scott feat. Leona LewisSafe
Charles & Karen35 Charleston"No Diggity"—MinimaticSafe

;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Stacey & Kevin33 Salsa"Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit"—Gina GSafe
Lauren & AJ25 Argentine Tango"River"—Bishop BriggsSafe
Graeme & Oti32 Jazz"The Trolley Song"—from Meet Me in St. LouisBottom two
Faye & Giovanni38 Paso Doble"Unstoppable"—E.S. PosthumusSafe
Kate & Aljaž30 American Smooth"Everlasting Love"—Love AffairEliminated
Charles & Karen38 Samba"La Bamba"—Connie FrancisSafe
Joe & Dianne38 Quickstep"Dancin' Fool"—from CopacabanaSafe
Ashley & Pasha40 Jive"Shake a Tail Feather"—from The Blues BrothersSafe

;Judges' votes to save
;Running order
;Judges' votes to save
; Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Lauren & AJ35 American Smooth"I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy"—from South PacificSafe
Faye & Giovanni40 Charleston"The Lonely Goatherd"—from The Sound of MusicSafe
Charles & Karen35 Rumba"Maria"—from West Side StoryEliminated
Ashley & Pasha38 Quickstep"Don't Rain on My Parade"—from Funny GirlBottom two
Stacey & Kevin38 American Smooth"I Dreamed a Dream"—from Les MisérablesSafe
Joe & Dianne36 Salsa"Joseph Megamix"—from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatSafe

;Judges' votes to save
;Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Stacey & Kevin39 Charleston"Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue"—Spike JonesSafe
Stacey & Kevin36 Viennese Waltz"You're My World"—Cilla BlackSafe
Joe & Dianne29 Viennese Waltz"This Year's Love"—David GraySafe
Joe & Dianne30 Argentine Tango"Red Right Hand"—Nick Cave and the Bad SeedsSafe
Ashley & Pasha36 Paso Doble"Spectrum "—Florence and the MachineBottom two
Ashley & Pasha40 American Smooth"Ain't That a Kick in the Head?"—Dean MartinBottom two
Lauren & AJ31 Tango"Nutbush City Limits"—Tina TurnerEliminated
Lauren & AJ23 Samba"Rock the Boat"—The Hues CorporationEliminated
Faye & Giovanni37 Samba"I Go to Rio"—Pablo CruiseSafe
Faye & Giovanni39 Argentine Tango"La cumparsita"—Machiko OzawaSafe

For the Dance-Off, Ashley & Pasha chose to dance their American Smooth, while Lauren & AJ chose to dance their Tango.
;Judges' votes to save
;Running order
CoupleScoreDanceMusicResult
Ashley & Pasha40 Salsa" The Time of My Life"–from Dirty DancingRunners-up
Ashley & Pasha40 Showdance"Keeping Your Head Up"–BirdyRunners-up
Ashley & Pasha40 Charleston"Witch Doctor"–Don LangRunners-up
Stacey & Kevin39 Foxtrot"Hi Ho Silver Lining"–Jeff BeckWinners
Stacey & Kevin36 Showdance"Land of 1000 Dances"–Wilson PickettWinners
Stacey & Kevin39 Paso Doble"Malagueña"–Brian SetzerWinners
Faye & Giovanni40 Viennese Waltz"It's a Man's Man's Man's World"–SealRunners-up
Faye & Giovanni40 Showdance"Lullaby of Broadway"–Harry Warren & Al DubinRunners-up
Faye & Giovanni40 Jazz"Fever"–Peggy LeeRunners-up
Joe & Dianne39 Paso Doble"Pompeii"–BastilleRunners-up
Joe & Dianne39 Showdance"I Bet You Look Good on The Dancefloor"–Arctic MonkeysRunners-up
Joe & Dianne38 Charleston"Cotton Eye Joe"–RednexRunners-up

Dance chart

Weekly ratings for each show on BBC One. All ratings are provided by BARB.
EpisodeDateOfficial rating
Weekly rank for BBC OneWeekly rank for all UK TVShare
Launch Show9.332240.9%
Live show 110.762247.3%
Live show 29.941146.8%
Results 19.372241.7%
Live show 310.882246.8%
Results 29.903346.8%
Live show 412.021151.2%
Results 39.972240.0%
Live show 511.491149.4%
Results 49.3423
Live show 611.461149.3%
Results 59.892238.7%
Live show 711.131148.0%
Results 69.612339.9%
Live show 811.551147.0%
Results 79.742239.9%
Live show 911.641248.6%
Results 89.602339.0%
Live show 1011.701847.4%
Results 99.432939.0%
Live show 1111.691648.8%
Results 109.832939.7%
Live show 1210.621747.0%
Results 119.572940.3%
Live show 1312.991154.4%