Who are the Strictly 2019 couples? Pairings revealed as Neil Jones gets his first partner
STRICTLY Come Dancing is set to dominate weekends once again as the dancing competition is back for a 17th series.
Let's take a look at which professional dancers has been paired with this year's celebrity contestants as they all battle it out to win the glitter ball trophy.
Who are the Strictly 2019 pairings?
Here are the official matches for the 17th series...
Alex Scott and Neil Jones
Former England and Arsenal defender Alex is the current favourite to walk away with the glitterball trophy, and it feels like she's definitely in with a good chance with Neil as her partner.
It's an exciting time for the dancer as he finally gets his chance to compete in the show properly for the first time since he joined in 2016.
After all those group performances, Neil is sure to go hell for leather with this opportunity to show off his choreography skills.
Catherine Tyldesley and Johannes Radebe
Corrie actress Catherine is getting ready to don her dancing shoes and the bookies think she'll do a sensational job in the competition.
The mother-of-one has been paired with South African Latin champion Johannes Radebe who will be competing for the first time since he joined the show in 2018. Time will tell if these two can heat things up as they work together to bag the top prize.
Karim Zeroual and Amy Dowden
Actor and children's TV presenter Karim is ready to get serious and pull out all the stops so he can be crown the show's champion by the end of the 17th season.
His partner Amy Dowden has previously competed with Brain Conley and Danny John-Jules but she was only able to come 13th and 9th respectively.
The Welsh dancer might finally see her luck change this year!
Saffron Barker and AJ Pritchard
YouTube star Saffron has over two million subscribers to her channel, with her videos mostly focusing on beauty, fashion, lifestyle and music.
So time will tell if her loyal fans will be able to help her waltz her way to victory on the show.
She is partnered with AJ Pritchard who has had a good run competing with stars such as Paralympian Lauren Steadman and The Saturdays' Mollie King.
Anneka Rice and Kevin Clifton
Anneka, is a well loved TV star who is best known for Treasure Hunt back in the 80s (and of course her famous bottom).
She is paired with Kevin, who has been a mainstay of the Strictly line-up in recent years and will be back for his seventh series.
In 2018 he won the show with Stacey Dooley - the pair are now a couple.
Emma Barton and Anton Du Beke
Emma, 42, who is best known for her role as Honey Mitchell in the BBC One soap EastEnders.
The actress has stage experience, having played lead role Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago in 2009 so she should handle the live audience.
She will be dancing with Anton, who is one of the few stars of the original 2004 line-up.
Anton's best result came in the first series when he placed third alongside Lesley Garrett so he'll be hoping to do better this year.
Michelle Visage and Giovanni Pernice
RuPaul's Drag Race star Michelle has become an LGBT icon after eight years on the outrageous drag queen competition — which has a cult following amongst millennials.
The former pop singer, 50, has been partnered with Giovanni - who has managed to come runner-up twice after four years on the show.
He finished second with Georgia May Foote in 2015, before he repeated the feat with Debbie McGee in 2017.
Chris Ramsey and Karen Clifton
Funnyman Chris, 32, is a regular on stand-up and panel shows as well as hosts his own comedy show.
He will be dancing alongside Karen. She is returning for her eighth series which makes her the longest surviving female professional on the show.
She reached the finals in 2014 when partnered with Mark Wright, but the duo ended up as runners-up.
James Cracknell and Luba Mushtuk
James, 47, hopes to take the competition by storm in the forthcoming series.
He's a British athlete and a nationwide rowing champion with several Olympic gold medals under his belt.
He is competing with Luba, who is a four-time winner of the Italian Dance Championship.
She joined the Strictly line-up in 2018, but was not given a celeb partner.
Will Bayley and Jannette Manrara
Paralympic table tennis player Will has an impressive record and is ranked world number 1 in his field.
He was born with arthrogryposis which affects all four of his limbs and he is ready to take on the challenge of giving it his all with the dances.
His dance partner Janette joined Strictly for its eleventh series in 2013 and has remained ever since.
The 35-year-old is married to fellow Strictly professional Aljaž Škorjanec.
Mike Bushell and Katya Jones
BBC Breakfast's Mike is "thrilled" to be taking part in Strictly.
The sports presenter Mike, 53, is notorious for making cock-ups live on TV.
His dance partner Katya claimed the Glitterball prize in 2017 along with Holby City actor Joe McFadden.
The Russian pro recently announced she has separated from her husband and fellow Strictly professional Neil Jones but they will still dance together on the show.
Dev Griffin and Dianne Bushwell
34-year-old Dev will juggle his radio presenting career on BBC Radio 1 while rehearsing for Strictly.
His dance partner Dianne made her debut on Strictly in 2017 and she was partnered with Reverend Richard Coles but the two were sent home in week three.
However, this took a turn for the better when Dianne was partnered in 2018 with Joe Sugg - as the pair are now a real-life couple.
David James and Nadiya Bychkova
Retired goalkeeper David, 48, revealed former Olympic swimmer Mark Foster encouraged him to take part after years of declining offers.
The football star played for clubs including Liverpool, West Ham and Man City over a 26 year career but he's hoping to be the one scoring lots of points on the show.
Her dance partner Nadiya is a two-time World Champion and European Champion and was part of a big Strictly Come Dancing shake-up.
Emma Thynn and Aljaž Škorjanec
Emma is an English chef, model and philanthropist, who is a brand ambassador for Fiorucci.
She is married to Cawlin Thynn, the son of Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath and is a contributing editor of British Vogue.
The philanthropist is dancing with Aljaž who joined the Strictly crew in series 11 and won his debut year with Abbey Clancey.
When does Strictly Come Dancing 2019 start on BBC One?
The Strictly launch show aired on BBC One at 7.10pm on Saturday, September 7.
Proceedings technically kicked off with the red carpet launch on Monday, August 26, 2019.
But the main show will air live on Saturday evenings with the results the following day on Sundays.
Who are the judges and hosts for Strictly 2019
In July 2019 it was revealed Motsi Mabuse will be joining the judging panel of Shirley Ballas, Bruno Tonioli and Craig Revel-Horwood.
Darcey Bussell quit the show in April 2019.
Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly return as the presenting duo, with Rylan Clark-Neal confirmed as host of Strictly: It Takes Two alongside Zoe Ball.