Oti Mabuse has received some sad news while she is holed up in lockdown. The Strictly Come Dancing star has lost one of her jobs after it was revealed that The Greatest Dancer has been axed after just two series. "Whilst there are no plans for a further series of The Greatest Dancer, we are proud of the show and would like to thank everyone involved in bringing so many memorable moments to BBC One," a BBC spokesperson confirmed. So far, neither Oti nor her colleagues, including Cheryl and Alesha Dixon, have commented on the cancellation.
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The series was presented by Alesha and Diversity’s Jordan Banjo. Oti was a dance captain alongside Cheryl, Glee's Matthew Morrison and Todrick Hall, who joined the show in its second season. There is a silver lining for Oti though – she won both series with one of her acts: Ellie Ferguson in 2019 and Michael and Jowita in 2020.
When The Greatest Dancer was first announced in 2018, the BBC said it would fill the void left by Strictly by being "one of the most inclusive, diverse and unique dance competitions around". The competition saw individual dancers, duos and groups from the ages of seven to over 70 take part in whatever dance style they liked to see if they could be named 'the greatest dancer'. The winning act walked away with a £50,000 jackpot and a chance to perform on Strictly Come Dancing as a special guest.
© Photo: BBCThe Greatest Dancer has been cancelled
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Luckily for Oti, it appears she will at least have Strictly to go back to this year – but the show may have some significant changes due to COVID-19. Director of Content Charlotte Moore explained that the series may have to go ahead without an audience. Speaking on a virtual panel for the Edinburgh TV Festival, she said: "I would say is [people think] if it is shiny floor, it needs an audience, and I don't think that's necessarily true.
"When you look at something like Drag Race, which is a big shiny floor talent competition with all sorts of catwalks, singing, dancing, impressions – it never has an audience. The audience is the four judges and I don't think it suffers from that at all. I think it is a brilliant show!" Charlotte continued: "I think inevitably things are going to change."
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