Former Strictly star Brendan Cole has slammed this year’s 2025 series while hitting out at the judging panel.
This Saturday (December 20) will mark this year’s final, where either Amber Davies, George Clarke or Karen Carney will be crowned a winner.
After serving as a pro dancer on the hit BBC show between 2004 and 2017, Brendan remains an avid fan. However, it seems this year’s series hasn’t been one of his favourites…
Strictly star Brendan Cole slams 2025 series
While speaking exclusively to Entertainment Daily, on behalf of Sky Vegas, Brendan said: “When you look back over the series, most of the people who have gone out were pretty average. There were four or five outstanding dancers.”
He insisted that Emmerdale star Lewis Cope and dance partner Katya Jones “should have won the whole show, hands down.”
“What Katya created with him was magnificent across the board. That was the winning couple from the very start,” Brendan added.
“It’s not been a strong series,” he declared. “The judges keep saying it’s the strongest ever, and I completely disagree. It’s been fairly weak. The finalists are particularly weak in certain areas. Karen’s technique is poor in places, George’s Samba was awful.”
While taking a swipe at the judges, Brendan continued: “It’s not the contestants’ fault. They’re being given nines for average performances. If the judges were more realistic, maybe the couples would rise to the occasion.”
‘George will definitely win’
In his opinion, Brendan told ED! that “George will definitely win.”
“Look at I’m A Celeb recently,” referring to social media personality Angry Ginge’s win. “People with big online fanbases have a massive advantage. His fans know how to vote, and they’ll vote multiple times. When that’s your world and your demographic, it’s very easy to swing it in your favour.”
However, Brendan stated that Amber is “by far the best dancer – technically and performance-wise”.
“She’s a trained dancer, so you expect it. There’s no jeopardy, which is why she won’t win,” he added.
The Strictly Come Dancing final airs on Saturday (December 21) at 7pm on BBC One.
So who would you like to see win the show? Tell us on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.