Where is the Blackpool Tower Ballroom, how can I visit and why is it such a big deal on Strictly?
STRICTLY Come Dancing is returning to BBC One this September for its 17th series.
Mid way through the competition the dancers will perform at the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool, a dance floor which lets the contestants show off their skills and where so many professionals have danced before them.
Where is the Tower Ballroom and when is Strictly 2018 visiting it?
The ballroom is located inside the Blackpool Tower, and really is an institution.
Standing proudly on the Blackpool seafront, the tower is an imposing 158 m tall and welcomes over 650,000 visitors per year.
The Tower was built in 1894 and the magical ballroom with its spectacular architecture and unique sprung floor is world-famous.
There is dancing on the celebrated floor every day, and visitors can take a whirl themselves or watch others during one of the daily tea dances.
It forms the centrepiece to any series of Strictly Come Dancing, and is the week that the celebrities strive for when they shimmy their first tentative steps on the show.
Why do the contestants get so excited about dancing there?
Before the celebrities even think about winning the competition, their sole aim is to get to Blackpool.
The trip is around mid-way through the competition and all the contestants covet the opportunity to perform in the iconic ballroom to show off what they’ve learned so far.
The venue is where the original Come Dancing series was filmed in the 1970s and the block wooden floor is famously springy underfoot (to reduce the impact on the dancers’ joints).
The ballroom is far larger than the BBC Strictly studio at 11 sq m, and the celebrities feel a real excitement and honour to dance there.
For the professional dancers, it’s a return to where many of them will have competed during their careers, with numerous national and international competitions being held there.
What are the best Strictly Come Dancing performances at Blackpool?
Who can forget Jill Halfpenny’s winning Jive from series two in 2004?
Not necessarily the best performance, but certainly one of the most memorable was Ann Widdecombe’s 2010 Samba.
Paired with Anton Du Beke the ex-MP wore one of her most famous outfits of her run on Strictly. She didn’t quite score the perfect 10s she was looking for, but she certainly entertained the fans.
More strictly news
When can I watch Strictly Come Dancing 2019 on BBC One?
Strictly Come Dancing is returning for its 17th series on BBC One in 2019.
It kicks off with the red carpet launch on Monday, August 26, 2019.
The series premiere will follow shortly after, but a date is yet to be confirmed.
The main show will air live on Saturday evenings with the results the following day on Sundays.
In July 2019 it was revealed Motsi Mabuse will be joining the judging panel of Shirley Ballas, Bruno Tonioli and Craig Revel-Horwood.
Darcey Bussell quit the show in April 2019.
Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly return as the presenting duo, with Rylan Clark-Neal confirmed as host of Strictly: It Takes Two alongside Zoe Ball.