Strictly stars Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly have hosted the show for decades – and the prime-time show has doubtless boosted their bank balances over the years.
However, despite their equal roles (and reported £150k annual pay) on the show, there is said to be a colossal difference between the net worths of the two.
Tess began co-hosting Strictly in 2004, while Claudia joined the show in 2014 after the departure of former host Sir Bruce Forsyth. She’d previously hosted It Takes Two.
The Strictly pair have since become a fairly iconic duo as they oversee celebrities twirl away on the dance floor. However, after 21 years, they’re set to leave at the end of the 2025 series.
But how much exactly are they both worth? And just how big is the financial difference between the two of them? Some people might find the answer to be rather surprising…
Strictly news: Claudia Winkleman’s net worth
Born in London in 1972, Claudia Winkleman, 53, has an abundance of experience working in the media.
Her first major television gig was in the 1990s. As part of a BBC documentary, Claudia travelled the world, visiting countries such as Costa Rica, India and the United Arab Emirates. She then went on to conduct interviews with celebrities on ITV’s This Morning.
Her first daily TV presenting role came in 2002 when Claudia become the host of BBC Three’s show Liquid News. Between 2013 and 2016, the presenter hosted BBC Two’s The Great British Sewing Bee. Comedian Joe Lycett replaced her in 2018.
Since 2022, she has been the host of the hit BBC series The Traitors and its celeb spin-off. According to The Sun, she has made more than £1 million just from the hit murder mystery competition. She’s also hosted The Piano on Channel 4 since 2023.
Given her diverse background in the media, it’s fair to say that Claudia has gained much notoriety over the years. In fact, the star is allegedly worth a whopping $12 million, which is around £9 million.
Her net worth was reportedly worked out by recent financial filings from her company, Little Owl Productions Ltd.
Tess Daly’s net worth
Tess has quite a colourful history as a media figure. The 54-year-old presenter, born in Stockport, started out in modelling after being scouted outside a McDonald’s restaurant in Manchester. Her first professional modelling gig took place in Tokyo, just six weeks after her 18th birthday.
It wasn’t long before Tess moved into the world of television. In 2000, she sent a presenting showreel into the producers of Channel 4’s The Big Breakfast and this helped kickstart her presenting career. Since then, the star has hosted shows such as Home on Their Own, Just the Two of Us and This Time Tomorrow.
Still, even with more than 20 years of presenting experience under her belt, Tess’ net worth is significantly less than that of Strictly co-host Claudia Winkleman. Various sources claim that she’s worth $5.3 million, or £4 million.
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Tess and Claudia set to quit
Now, after 21 years of being involved with the show, Claudia and Tess are set to leave Strictly.
“We have loved working as a duo and hosting Strictly has been an absolute dream. We were always going to leave together and now feels like the right time,” they said in a joint statement.
“We will have the greatest rest of this amazing series and we just want to say an enormous thank you to the BBC and to every single person who works on the show. They’re the most brilliant team and we’ll miss them every day,” they then continued.
“We will cry when we say the last “keep dancing” but we will continue to say it to each other. Just possibly in tracksuit bottoms at home while holding some pizza.”
Strictly stars past and present shared their love and support, with some branding it the “end of an era”.
Strictly continues on Saturday, October 22 at 6.25pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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