Bruce Forsyth struggled last year, he struggled the year before that and will if he returns struggle again this season. He’s 82 and let’s face it, past his prime! Don’t get me wrong,  he’s an ambassador for the BBC who, with the departure of Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley need all the stars they can afford to pay.  “I won’t be doing a Christine and leave the BBC“.

There have been numerous rumours since the last finale that big changes were afoot, talks of stars being axed, format changes and a change of presenters. We are still awaiting news on the later two but we do know for a fact that some of the stalwarts of Strictly Come Dancing have been axed from the main line-up.

Brian Fortuna has announced he is leaving the show following the decision to ask Ian Waite, Matthew Cutler, Darren Bennett and Lilia Kopylova to move aside and dance only professional routines leaving the way clear for new dancers to partner celebrities. It’s a kick in the teeth for the dancers and looks like popularity has nothing to do with the decision. The BBC are keen to make changes and changes they will make. Fortuna does have a gig so fans do not fear, you can see him partner Ali Bastian in the West End production of “Burn The Floor”.

Fortuna said:

“I really enjoyed working on Strictly over the years – loved the fans and loved all the people I got work with – but there are changes planned for the next season so I’ve decided not to return to the show,” he said.

“Both Ali and I are looking forward to seeing all our fans at the Shaftesbury Theatre.”

The three new male dancers have been named as Artem Chigvintsev, Jared Murillo and Robin Windsor.

Forsyth has spoken out against the BBC claiming they were wrong to sack Arlene Phillips (67) and replace her with Alesha Dixon (31). I’m not a huge fan of Bruce but he is right in this instance. Dixon was way out of her comfort zone and appeared clueless for the majority of the series and relied far too heavily on Bruno for advice on what to say when judging. It is unlikely that Arelene will ever return to the show but the sooner they get judges who can actually judge the better. The News of the World ran a “should Alesha be sacked” poll on the back of poor performances.

Celebrities joined in the condemnation. Ex-contestant Esther Rantzen said of Alesha: “She lacks Arlene’s style and expertise. She played safe when awarding marks.”

And Martin Offiah, rugby-playing star of the first series of Strictly, said: “Simon Cowell was brave enough to bring Louis Walsh back on X Factor.

“The BBC should be brave enough to bring Arlene back. They need to hold their hands up and admit they made a mistake.”

Even head judge Len Goodman admitted for the first time he was “disappointed” at Arlene’s shock axing.

This year on Strictly there will be 14 celebrities vying for the title. The 14 Professional dancers partnering the celebrities are:

Artem Chigvintsev, Jared Murillo, Robin Windsor, Anton du Beke, Brendan Cole, James Jordan, Vincent Simone

Ola Jordan, Flavia Cacace, Erin Boag, Kristina Rihanoff, Natalie Lowe, Aliona Vilani, Katya Virshilas