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Contestants at Strictly Come Dancing
EastEnders Star James Bye becomes the 14th celebrity to be confirmed by Strictly Come Dancing for this year’s series Strictly Come Dancing.
The 38-year-old celebrity will compete for the coveted glitterball as his profile is certainly going to soar as a result.
Announcing the news on Friday morning, James said: “I’m not known for my shimmy or my twinkle toes – my kids regularly laugh at my dad dancing but it’s an honor to be asked and I’m going to give it my best shot.
The father of three young children with his over a decade wife Victoria has been part of EastEnders since 2014 when he took over the role of Martin Fowler.
James joins other 13 previously-announced fellow contestants on this year’s line-up like Will Mellor and Kym Marsh who have been nominated early last week.
Bye said that there are some huge dance shoes to fill and that it is truly exciting to follow in the footsteps of some amazing EastEnders talent.
“I’d love to do everyone proud.” Added James who is already a familiar face on TV screens thanks his role as Martin Fowler in EastEnders.
The 20th series of Strictly Dancing has previously nominated other celebrities like Radio 2 presenter Richie Anderson, Loose Women panelist Kaye Adams, stand-up performer Jayde Adams and Paralympic gold medalist Ellie Simmonds.
Since taking over from Martin Fowler at EastEnders in 2014, Bye has been nominated for multiple British Soap awards, including a win for Best Storyline in 2016.
The list of confirmed stars learning to dance this year is Pop singer Fleur East, Wildlife presenter Hamza Yassin, football legend Tony Adams, CBBC star Molly Rainford, comedian Ellie Taylor, 80s chart-topper Matt Goss and broadcaster Tyler West.
The BBC announced on Friday morning that the remaining celebrity contestants joining the new series will be announced in due course.
