BBC bosses ‘have found the next Claudia Winkleman’ as Bake Off legend joins talks

The BBC is reportedly eyeing up a British comedy icon to replace Claudia Winkleman on Strictly Come Dancing and take over her hugely popular segment.

Last year, The Traitors host Claudia and TV sidekick Tess Daly announced that the 2025 series of Strictly (which was won by Karen Carney) would be their last.

Tess has been at the helm since the glitzy dance competition began in 2004, presenting alongside Sir Bruce Forsyth before Claudia made the move from It Takes Two in 2014, making them primetime’s first-ever female presenting duo.

Alas, even the best things must come to an end, and speculation remains rife over who will succeed them.

According to the latest reports, former Great British Bake Off host Mel Giedroyc has caught the attention of Strictly bosses, who want her to host what’s become known as the Clauditorium.

As Tess remained downstairs, catching the celebrities’ initial reaction to their dances before directing the judges’ feedback, Claudia would attempt to take charge upstairs in a much more chaotic fashion.

Surrounded by all the other contestants and professionals, she would interview the pairs fresh off the dancefloor with her famous sarcasm and quick wit, and there would often be surprises from the cast, who would interject and become rowdier as the show progressed.

Basically, it was business downstairs and party upstairs, and the Beeb seems to reckon Mel has what it takes to carry on the good vibes.

‘The Clauditorium is the section where the dancers go to receive their scores from the judges and decompress after their routines,’ an insider told The Sun.

‘So it needs to be hosted by someone with a gentle touch, who can use humour to relieve the tension.’

The source added that Mel, 57, is ‘seen as a great swap for Claudia, as they’re both smart, funny, and have a reputation within the TV world for being easy to work with.’

‘They’re both highly professional, well-liked by the public, and boast just the right balance of confidence and self-deprecation.’

As well as that, Mel has years of experience under her belt, meaning she’d be able to act fast if something happened unexpectedly.

‘Mel has experience of hosting live TV through fronting BBC Children in Need, and, thanks to Bake Off, she already knows what it’s like to front a big BBC prime-time show.’

The Surrey-born comedian hosted Bake Off when it first landed on the BBC with Dame Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood as judges between 2010 and 2016.

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Both bowed out when the cookery programme moved to Channel 4; since then, Mel has been involved with various major productions, including the Eurovision Song Contest, Taskmaster, Last One Laughing UK series 2, and even The Masked Singer, having competed as Teeth in 2025.

And she’s no stranger to the Strictly studios either, having participated in the 2021 Christmas Special with pro partner Neil Jones.

‘I’ve always thought Strictly’s a weird one for a woman in her 50s,’ she said at the time.

‘But now I’ve dipped my large, middle-aged toe into the glitter, and maybe I feel differently.’

Rumours of her signing come after it emerged that two other British TV titans are in the running to replace Tess – but only one of them will get the job.

It’s said to now be a ‘straight shoot-out’ between broadcasters Zoe Ball and Emma Willis, as ‘the senior execs want a traditional presenter working alongside a more left-field person, a female stand-up comedian.’

Zoe’s name has been floating around for a while, and she only fuelled rumours when she announced that she was quitting her BBC Radio 2 show in December, suggesting she could be clearing up her schedule ahead of Strictly’s 2026 season.

The former It Takes Two host, 55, hasn’t made a secret of the fact that she’d be up for the gig either, having said she’d ‘love’ to take on hosting duties for the main show.

Previously, Alison Hammond, Amanda Holden, Alan Carr, Alex Jones, Bradley Walsh, Rylan Clark, and Angela Scanlon were reported to be on the shortlist.

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