Why Tess and Claudia had to leave Strictly Come Dancing

So Tess and Claudia are leaving Strictly Come Dancing . I’ll be honest – I’m still processing it. I never wanted this news to come. I don’t like change and this one isn’t just a shock – it’s left me with a big, unsettling fear. Not only are the ravens leaving the (Blackpool) tower – but they had no choice.

Strictly Come Dancing , as we all know, has had a rocky few years. Abusive professionals, drug raids, arrests, misogynistic language… There were many who called for it to take a break – recalibrate, mix things up, let the public long for it again and come back stronger than ever, rather than forcing us to believe it’s still happy families.

Instead, it pressed on: overhauled much of what happens behind the scenes, gave its contestants chaperones, kept most of the format the same an