The star of the Go Compare adverts – Welsh opera singer Wynne Evans – will be competing in this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.
He will join singer and actress Toyah Willcox and TV doctor Punam Krishan, as well as comedian Chris McCausland and JLS star JB Gill who were announced on Monday.
The second group of celebrities to sign up for the juggernaut dance show this year was unveiled during Vernon Kay’s BBC Radio 2 show on Tuesday.
Evans is best known as the moustachioed tenor from the Go Compare adverts and is a presenter on BBC Radio Wales.
Throughout his 25-year career, he has had two number one classical music albums, has been a principal at many major opera houses around the world and has delivered more than 200 performances at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
Born in Carmarthen, he was also crowned Celebrity MasterChef champion for 2023.
After being unveiled, Evans said he is most looking forward to taking on the ballroom numbers but he is “nervous” for the lively dances.
Wynne Evans joked about the dangers of him jumping on the show. Pic: PA
‘I represent every portly middle-aged father’
Reflecting on what he is looking forward to, he told Kay: “The classic ballroom stuff is the one I’m looking forward to the most because obviously for 20 years I was an opera singer so we did quite a lot of classic ballroom in opera.”
He added: “The stuff I’m really nervous about is the stuff that needs any kind of jumping because I think I represent every portly middle-aged father who’s like ‘I don’t want to really do the jive and set a minor tsunami off in north London’.”
Evans, 52, said he has prepared himself for the show by buying tap, jazz, character and ballet shoes as well as a new gym kit and a pencil case for making notes.
The singer was also joined during the interview by his long-term friend, Gavin And Stacey star Joanna Page, who said she is “very excited” for him.
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‘I love the drama’
Fellow contestant, Willcox, who was at the height of her fame in the late 1970s and 1980s when she fronted the band Toyah, said she was “super excited” to be on the show.
Later moving on to a solo music career, she has also found success in the acting world, performing on stage, TV and film.
Wilcox, 66, said: “I love this show, I love everything about it.
“Music makes me want to dance, it always has, and to be part of this – the spray tan, the glitter – I mean, this is a landmark show for me.”
Toyah Willcox described Strictly as a ‘landmark show’. Pic: PA
Meanwhile, NHS GP Dr Krishan is best known for her appearances on the BBC breakfast programme Morning Live and BBC Radio Scotland’s phone-in surgery.
She previously co-hosted a podcast titled The Medic Mum and is the author of How To Be A Doctor And Other Life-Saving Jobs.
Dr Punam Krishan will continue seeing patients at her GP surgery. Pic: PA
Dr Krishan admitted the show was out of her “comfort zone” but was looking forward to the “drama” of taking part.
She also said she will continue doing her GP surgery alongside competing on the show.
Unofficially, Olympic swimmer Tom Dean has also let slip he will be taking to the dance floor in the autumn, but the BBC is yet to confirm his involvement.
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Swimmer Tom Dean – second from left – after winning gold for Team GB at the Paris Olympics in the men’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay. Pic: PA
Changes pledged after allegations
It’s already been a tough year for Strictly, with an investigation into allegations of abusive behaviour on the show currently taking place.
In light of claims criticising the culture of the BBC show, which have come from a number of ex-contestants, the broadcaster has announced new methods to “strengthen welfare and support”, including a chaperone who would be present during training room rehearsals “at all times”.
Training for this year’s Strictly is now under way, with the programme usually hitting our screens every September, and crowning the winner in December.
The show celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.