Strictly Come Dancing star Nadiya Bychkova hints a senior royal wants to compete on show

Strictly Come Dancing star Nadiya Bychkova has claimed that the Princess Royal is keen to take part in the show.

The long-running BBC dance show annually welcomes famous faces from a range of different industries, including entertainment, journalism, sports and politics.

However, there may one day be a royal participant. Professional dancer Bychkova, 34, revealed that Princess Anne would like to appear on the programme, and suggested that she’d be a worthy addition to a future lineup.

“I met her at a ballet event,” the dancer told The Sun. “She is a Strictly fan and she wants to go on the show — she told me.”

Bychkova continued: “I think she would be good – there’s a lot of personality there, isn’t there?”

The Princess Royal, 73, is often considered the hardest-working royal, and is known for her quick wit and dry humour, coming out with quips such as: “When I appear in public, people expect me to neigh, grind my teeth, paw the ground and swish my tail – none of which is easy.”

Anne is not the only member of the royal family who has expressed appreciation for Strictly – the Queen is also said to be a fan of the show.

In February, Camilla accepted a pair of tap shoes offered by Strictly star Johannes Radebe at a charity event and said that she’d consider trying out the dance style.

“I would love to do it because I’ve always wanted to tap dance,” she said. “So in my dotage perhaps it’s something I could take up.”

Earlier this month, Strictly head judge Shirley Ballas addressed rumours that the Queen would appear on this year’s series in some way, with reports claiming that the show could be broadcast live from Buckingham Palace.

While featuring on Good Morning Britain, Ballas said: “I know quite a lot about what is going on. I would love it if Queen Camilla was on it.”

Elsewhere, Radebe has also claimed that Sophie, the Duchess of Edinburgh, would also love to take part in the show.

“She would love the opportunity to [compete in Strictly Come Dancing] but she can’t obviously,” the professional dancer said during a recent appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show. “She has personally told me this.”

Sophie is known to be a massive fan of the dancing programme and even attended a live show with her daughter Lady Louise Windsor back in 2018.

Strictly Come Dancing will return to BBC One this autumn.