We’ve ‘Got The Jitters For the Glitters’

Last night Strictly Come Dancing, along with presenters Ant and Dec,Baker Streetsleuth Benedict Cumberbatch and comedy Mrs Brown’s Boys, raised the slightly less glittery trophy at the National Television Awards. Voted the Best Talent Show by the public for the third time, Strictly Come Dancing is a testament to the growing popularity of dancing on television.

After another hugely successful year Strictly Come Dancing started 2014 in style trouncing X Factor once more. Throughout series 11 the show has averaged 11 million viewers, two million more than their nearest rivals, and the 2013 Christmas Special alone attracted 35 per cent of the Christmas Day audiences. Since the show started in 2004, when Strictly fans numbered on average 4.6 million, the number of viewers tuning in every Saturday night has tripled. The success of Strictly Come Dancing, however, should not only be measured by the power surge every Saturday from October to December. More than 4.8 million people attend community dance groups a year and whether it is ballet, ballroom or belly-dancing our new found obsession with boogie certainly owes a lot to the fake tan and sequins of the Strictly Ballroom.

As Len Goodman said we have got ‘the jitters for the glitters’. When the show started an estimated 175,000 to 260,000 people took up dancing and Len’s own dance school saw a 40 per cent increase in prospective students. Here at Dancewear Central we have certainly noticed an unprecedented rise in people getting involved in the world of dance as a result of the show. As well as encouraging people to get active and challenging the perception of Ballroom as an out-dated art, Strictly has been hugely responsible for encouraging more men to start dancing.

Alongside picking up their award this year Strictly Come Dancing’s judges, professionals and 2013 winner model Abbey Clancy laced up their dancing shoes once more to entertain the audience. As they raised their trophy though, rescued by Bruno from Ant and Dec, they must have thought whether this would have been possible less then ten years ago. Now the viewing figures speak for themselves, and hopefully Strictly Come Dancing will continue to raise the profile of dancing throughout 2014!