OTI Mabuse is one of Strictly’s biggest stars – but she could be shooting off permanently after rival channel ITV signed her to appear on a third show.
The dance pro has been announced as the host of its new dating contest Romeo & Duet.
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This comes just days before she starts as a Dancing On Ice judge at the weekend. And later this year Oti is likely to return as a judge on ITV’s The Masked Dancer, a role she first took up in 2021 and bowled audiences over.
A TV insider said: “Strictly is the show that made her and it will always have a special place in her heart. But discussions haven’t even started with the BBC about which pros will be on the programme this year.
“Meanwhile, ITV have shown their commitment to making Oti a star with a trio of prime- time programmes which are going to keep her very busy this year. Crucially, the latest sees her take on a presenting role, whereas she’s previously been part of larger teams on her other TV shows.”
Seven-part series Romeo & Duet, which starts filming this month and is due to air later in the year, sees Oti go from dancing to playing Cupid. And just like Romeo and Juliet in Shakespeare’s play, it has singletons appearing on a balcony, where they will serenade each other — but without seeing what they look like.
Oti will then invite each pair to perform a duet together, before they battle it out with other couples to be crowned the winner.
She said: “It’s always been a dream of mine to host, so this is a real pinch-me moment.”
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Since joining Strictly in 2015, Oti has become one of the show’s favourite dancers.
She won two years in a row, in 2019 and 2020, after being partnered with Kelvin Fletcher, then Bill Bailey.
And all the time Oti has managed to dodge the show’s notorious curse that has seen contestants fall in love during their stints on the series. That “curse” would be a blessing for contestants on Romeo & Duet, of course.
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