‘Holby City’ actress Chizzy Akudolu has become the 12th celebrity confirmed for this year’s ‘Strictly Come Dancing’.
She is the second of five stars to be announced on what ‘Strictly’ bosses have dubbed ‘Mega Monday’ (21 August), at the end of which the entire of the line-up for the upcoming series will be complete.
The news was announced with a brief post on the show’s Twitter page:
She said: “When I was 13, I made the finals of a disco dancing competition once but there was this amazing girl who exploded onto the stage with a gorgeous sequined costume, throwing glitter everywhere… I knew it was game over for me.
“That was then, this is now and this is my chance to have even more sequins!”
Chizzy - best known for her portrayal of Mo Effanga in the BBC medical drama - was first rumoured for the show over the weekend, with The Mirror claiming bosses “can’t wait for her to get started”, quoting a source as saying: “She has millions of fans from ‘Holby’.”
Luckily for Chizzy, there’ll be a familiar face for her in ‘Strictly’ rehearsals, as her co-star Joe McFadden was also revealed to be taking part last week.
‘Good Morning Britain’ presenter Charlotte Hawkins had previously been confirmed for the line-up earlier that morning, with The Saturdays singer Mollie King, comedian Brian Conley, daytime queen Ruth Langsford and ‘EastEnders’ hunk Davood Ghadami already having been announced in the past couple of weeks.
Also competing on ‘Strictly’ this year will be comedy performer Susan Calman, ‘Sunday Brunch’ presenter Simon Rimmer, 80s-musician-turned-reverend Richard Coles, former ‘X Factor’ contestant Aston Merrygold and soap star Gemma Atkinson.
