Why Strictly Come Dancing voting figures won’t be revealed

The Strictly Come Dancing voting figures and stats won’t be revealed by the BBC.

Other shows like Britain’s Got Talent and I’m A Celebrity regularly release detailed voting breakdowns at the end of their respective series but the BBC won’t be following suit.

Tonight saw the final of Strictly 2023 as actress Ellie Leach, EastEnders star Bobby Brazier and theatre star Layton Williams went head to head for the glitterball.

Once again viewers were able to vote for their favourite via phone, online and mobile. The results are combined with the judges’ scores weekly to decide the bottom two in the dance off.

In the final it was viewer votes alone who decided the winner, with the judges votes just given as ‘guidance’.

Strictly Come Dancing voting results 2023

The BBC says that it will not be releasing Strictly Come Dancing voting figures. It means we don’t know who finished as runner up or third place.

The BBC puts the decision down to not wanting to “affect the way that people vote”.

They state: “We invite you to vote for the dancers that you liked best, based on their performance in each show and during the series.

“Releasing voting figures could affect the way that people vote, and also have an impact on the participants. We therefore do not disclose the exact voting figures.”

‘It might not go down well’

Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood previously encouraged the BBC to release the stats but understood why they chose not to do so.

He told the Radio Times in 2017: “I only wish they’d make the figures from the phone vote public, to stop talk of it being fixed. But if one celeb gets 13 million votes and another gets two, it might not go down well.”

Meanwhile, previous finalists have insisted they DON’T want to know the full placings.

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Speaking before the final in 2018, eventual winner Joe McFadden said: “It’s sort of all irrelevant.”

And Debbie McGee said: “I don’t think it would be fair on people to release the voting figures because it would make some people feel really unpopular. And others…well.

“I don’t see why we need to know, as long as you know you got through.”

Strictly will return to BBC One next year, following a one-off festive special on Christmas Day.