Strictly Come Dancing fans rejoiced on Saturday night as season 23 commenced with a bang, with the launch show on BBC One. However, some fans of the ballroom and Latin dance competition were left disappointed as it was revealed that several of the fan-favourite pros have been left without a celebrity partner this year – including Chinese champ Nancy Xu . The switch-up comes as producers have recruited two new pros – Alexis Warr from the United States and Julian Caillon from Australia.

The launch show, hosted by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman , revealed the celebrity-pro dancer pairings before the competition kicks off fully on 27 September, which subsequently revealed that Nancy Xu would appear in group numbers only and would not be receiving a celebrity partner.

© BBC/Ray Burmis

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