Janette Manrara will no longer host Strictly Come Dancing companion show It Takes Two, the presenter has announced. Manrara, a former professional dancer on the BBC series, suggested the move was part of a major overhaul, telling her YouTube followers: “Strictly Come Dancing has changed hugely, and I am no longer a part of It Takes Two or the main show.”
She said she will “still be involved in other ways,” but did not specify what this would include. “It just means that I’m free to pursue and do many other projects that I’ve always wanted to do and never really thought about doing,” she said. “Strictly is all I’ve known for the last 14 years, so it is a bit like, ‘Oh, we’re going into a different world, a different space, how are we going to navigate that?’”
The Independent has contacted the BBC for comment. It Takes Two, which airs during the week and features updates from rehearsals with the show’s contestants, was hosted by Manrara and former contestant Fleur East. It is unknown whether East will also be leaving the show.
Earlier this year, it was claimed by The Sun that Manrara and East had been dropped as hosts because bosses “want a completely new look and fresh start for the show,” adding that the pair could be “repurposed elsewhere.” Manrara started as a professional on the main Strictly show in 2013 before replacing Zoe Ball on It Takes Two in 2021, joining Rylan. When Rylan left the show in 2023, East, the singer and DJ who competed on the show the previous year, became Manrara’s co-host.
Strictly is undergoing big changes ahead of the 2026 series following the departure of long-time hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe, and dancer Johannes Radebe were recently announced as their replacements. Meanwhile, Nadiya Bychkova, Karen Hauer, Michelle Tisakkis, and Luba Mushtuk have also been axed from the BBC competition, with Gorka Marquez quitting the show to become a judge on the Spanish version.
Earlier this week, Mushtuk’s 10-year Strictly journey concluded when she finished her last show of the annual tour. The dancer grew tearful when she addressed her departure, telling the crowd: “What I’ve been saying is that the dance we love has to sometimes come to an end, but that doesn’t mean the music stops. It means there are new dances waiting to be discovered, new steps to learn and new stories to tell.”
