Former Emmerdale star joins Strictly Come Dancing 2025 after contestant forced to withdraw
Kristian Nairn's replacement has been announced!
Emmerdale star Lewis Cope has been announced as a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing 2025 after actor Kristian Nairn pulled out of the series.
Nairn announced he had been forced to withdraw from the series due to "unexpected medical reasons" on Thursday (21st August).
Announcing his participation on BBC One’s The One Show later that day, Cope said the show had contacted him on Monday asking if he wanted to take part in this year’s season.
The actor revealed he was walking down Oxford Street on his way to meet a friend when he got the call.
Talking about how it felt to be joining the series at the last minute, he said: "I think, if anything, it’s probably helped me because I haven’t really had time to think about it or anything, so now the excitement has kind of just taken over."
Scroll on to learn more about the actor.
Who is Lewis Cope?
Age: 30
Job: Actor
Instagram: @lewiscope
Cope is an actor who made his stage debut at 11 years old, taking on the role of Michael in the West End hit Billy Elliot: The Musical.
However, he is best known for his role in ITV’s Emmerdale, in which he plays series regular Nicky Milligan.
He was nominated for the Rising Star Award at the 2023 National Television Awards for the role.
Away from the Dales, Cope has also starred in Vera, Mrs Sidhu Investigates and Hetty Feather.
What has Lewis Cope said about joining Strictly Come Dancing?
On joining Strictly Come Dancing, Cope said in a statement: "I'm so excited to be swapping the Dales for the dance floor and joining this year's Strictly Come Dancing."
He continued: "I've always been a fan of the show and cannot wait to get started!"
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One and iPlayer later this year.
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Authors
Molly Moss is a Trends Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest trends across TV, film and more. She has an MA in Newspaper Journalism and has previously written for publications including The Guardian, The Times and The Sun Online.
