Josh Widdicombe’s appointment as one of the three new presenters on Strictly, replacing former hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, has proved to be controversial
Strictly host Josh Widdicombe has finally addressed the BBC show after revealing he was “pulling up the drawbridge” on social media following the backlash.
The 43-year-old host’s appointment as one of the three new presenters on Strictly, replacing former hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, has proved to be controversial. Some fans at home have suggested he seemed like a “spare part” next to Emma Willis while hosting the main show.
Since his live show debut over two weeks ago, Josh has kept a low profile online and has declined to speak about Strictly.
However, Josh took to Instagram on Monday evening to share a clip from Saturday night’s show. The video was one of Shirley’s and featured her pulling out her mini shoes, much to the exasperation of her fellow judges.
She had captioned it: “Actual footage of me and my tiny shoes annoying my fellow judges for a full 39 seconds.”
Resharing the clip, Josh simply wrote: “Iconic.”
It comes after Josh spoke about his social media usage during his podcast with Rob Beckett. On a recent episode of Parenting Hell, the comedian revealed he’d started using a brick phone to limit his screen time.
Speaking to Rob Beckett, he said: “I’m back on the brick. You’ve inspired me and I’m loving the brick again. It’s mad that we’ve reached this space in time where we have to buy a second phone because we’re being dragged into these apps.”
Rob, who is appearing on the second series of Celebrity Traitors, joked that Josh had “pulled the drawbridge up” on his social media usage since 2003. Josh joined in on the joke, saying he “pulled the drawbridge up at 2008 when I started stand up”.
Fans did largely feel Josh had improved at the weekend, with one writing: “#Strictly The format for the Results show is so much better. Emma is reading out the results on her own and has had the chance to do a little segment with JoJo upstairs whilst Josh is upstairs chatting to the celebs and seems really natural. The hosts finally sharing the roles which is what is needed.”
However, others remained unconvinced. One commented: “I hate to say it but Josh stuck out like a sore thumb last night. The jokes just ain’t hitting. #Strictly.”
Former pro James Jordan is one of those who believes having three judges “still isn’t working”.
“Josh has a strong TV background, but his jokes feel forced at the moment, like he’s been told to be funny on cue rather than reacting naturally to what’s happening,” he said on his blog. “I think Emma should be allowed to run the main studio solo, the way Bruce Forsyth or Tess Daly did, and let Claudia’s old upstairs room exist as its own separate thing. Having three of them in the mix just adds confusion.”
He added: “Emma’s amazing, and I think the show would be better served letting her take the reins fully rather than sharing the load. I’d like to see them go back to two presenters next year.”
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
