Strictly Come Dancing has added Apprentice star Thomas Skinner to this year’s celebrity line-up. 

The reality star and businessman’s name was revealed on Hits Radio’s Breakfast Show on Thursday morning.

Thomas, 34, had previously teased his signing on social medial before confirming the news to host Sam Thompson.

He said: “I’m beyond excited to be joining Strictly Come Dancing. I’ve tackled the boardroom and some big breakfasts in my time but stepping onto the dance floor under that glitter ball is next level stuff!

“I’ve never danced in my life (other than at weddings) but I’m ready to graft and of course have a laugh. Bring on the sequins, sambas and most importantly, the BOSH to the ballroom!”

Thomas is the 10th celebrity to be announced for Strictly Come Dancing 2025.

Strictly Come Dancing: Thomas Skinner

Thomas found fame on the 2019 series of the BBC show The Apprentice. As a candidate, he impressed Lord Alan Sugar with his no-nonsense approach and straight talking. He owned a mattress and memory foam pillow company at the time but had started his career as a market trader.

Lord Sugar fired Thomas in Week 9 of The Apprentice, but his ties with the BBC have remained. He’s since appeared on Celebrity MasterChef and is now heading for the Strictly dance floor.

Fans of Thomas will be familiar with his catchphrase: “Bosh!”

Thomas has now confirmed his Strictly signing on his Instagram account, sharing his official cast shot.

The Strictly line-up so far

The BBC has now confirmed 10 celebrities for Strictly Come Dancing 2025. Gladiator Nitro – real name Harry Aikines-Aryeete – was the first to be announced earlier this week.

Nitro was followed by ER and Doctor Who actress Alex Kingston, Love Islander Dani Dyer and retired football Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. EastEnders’ Balvinder Sopal has also been confirmed for the series. She joins social media influencer George Clarke.

Less than an hour after La Voix and Chris Robshaw were announced, the BBC confirmed its ninth celeb; model and actress Ellie Goldstein.

Still to come

Fifteen celebrities usually take part in Strictly Come Dancing each series. This means there are five more star dancers to be revealed by the BBC.

Check out TV Guide’s full list of rumoured Strictly Come Dancing celebrities here.

Judges and new dancers

The BBC has already confirmed this year’s Strictly Come Dancing pro dancers. They include all of the usual favourites, including Aljaz Skorjanec, Amy Dowden, Vito Coppola and Johannes Radebe.

There are also two new pros joining the Strictly dancer line-up in 2025. They are Alexis Warr and Julian Caillon. American dancer Alexis has already appeared on So You Think You Can Dance? and Dancing With The Stars. Julian, from Australia, has appeared on the show’s counterparts Down Under, too.

Last week, Gorka Marquez announced he will miss a big chunk of this year’s series. Gorka will also be without a celebrity partner for 2025.

The dancer has a clash of schedules after landing a job on the Spanish version of Strictly, called Bailando Con Las Estrella. It means he will only be able to pre-record the group dances for Strictly UK and then bow out until later in the series.

The judging panel is remaining the same for 2025. Shirley Ballas will be back as Head Judge, sitting alongside Anton Du Beke, Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse.

When does Strictly Come Dancing 2025 start?

BBC Breakfast confirmed that this year’s Strictly Come Dancing will start on Saturday September 20. Last year’s pre-recorded launch show aired six days earlier on September 14, with the first live show following the week after.

The series will air every Saturday in the run up to Christmas. The dreaded results show airs on a Sunday night. The 2024 finale aired on December 14. Last year, Chris McCausland and his professional partner Dianne Buswell scooped the Glitterball Trophy.

Read more: Best entertainment shows coming this autumn including I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!

Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer this autumn.