The BBC has revealed that EastEnders star Lacey Turner will be competing in the next series of Strictly Come Dancing.
Turner, best known for her role as Stacey Slater in the longrunning BBC soap, has won multiple awards during her time on the show while also appearing in stage productions and TV dramas, including the lead role in BBC series Our Girl.
The news was confirmed on Strictly social channels, with further announcements to take place ahead of the new season’s launch in September this year.
Turner said in a statement: “I am so excited to being making my way to the dance floor this year to be a part of Strictly Come Dancing!
“I am a huge fan and can’t quite believe I will be taking part and not watching at home this year! I look forward to meeting everyone and learning a new skill!”
Turner announced she was taking an indefinite hiatus from EastEnders in May last year, with her character making a dramatic departure for Brazil along with children Arthur and Hope, while her eldest daughter Lily and granddaughter Charli stayed behind in Watford.
The hiatus marked Turner’s first break from the series in 21 years, having made her debut on the show in 2004, when she was 16 years old.
Speaking to OK! Magazine, Turner said she has mixed feelings about taking a break from EastEnders and admitted she experienced guilt since becoming a mother to three children with her husband, Matt Kay, whom she married in 2017.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 day
New subscribers only. £9.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled.
Try for free
ADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
“The older they get the more you realise how quickly the little years pass,” Turner said of her children.: Dusty, six, Trilby, five, and one-year-old Gibsy Olive “You feel guilty for leaving them, but also guilty for not earning. It’s just never-ending.”
She added: “We’re all just trying our best. And whatever your best looks like, that is enough. Right now, I’m just soaking up the baby cuddles and focusing on family life. But I do miss the chaos of the Square and my work family.”
The Strictly casting announcement comes earlier than expected, as last year’s lineup wasn’t unveiled until August. However, the professional dancers set to participate in the 2026 series have already been revealed – with five former stars leaving the series outright.
Professional dancer Johannes Radebe, meanwhile, has been promoted to one of three new hosts, alongside Emma Willis and Josh Widdicombe.
Turner was reported to be on the lineup last week, along with other rumoured contestants such as former Love Island winner Dani Dyer, daughter of actor Danny Dyer, who was forced to pull out of last year’s series after fracturing her ankle during rehearsals. She was replaced by musical theatre star Amber Davies.
Other rumoured contestants include Australian singer Delta Goodrem, whose appearance is, according to The Daily Mail, “a done deal”, while food critic Tom Parker-Bowles – who was hotly tipped for last year’s series – is believed to be on producers’ wish list.
The show’s four judges – Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke – will all return for the new iteration of Strictly following the departure of long-time hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.
