BBC Strictly Come Dancing fans raise issue after Layton Williams ...

Fans of Strictly Come Dancing have raised issue after West End star Layton Williams was confirmed as a contestant for the 2023 show. The 28-year-old film and theatre actor has performed in London's West End in the title role in Billy Elliot and Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.

Also known for his TV gig playing Stephen Carmichael in Jack Whitehall's BBC series Bad Education, Layton has been confirmed as one of the first few Strictly contestants for the upcoming series.

But some fans of the popular show were sceptical, taking issue with him competing in a dancing competition with complete novices, reports Birmingham Live.

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Frank Kasanouva asked: "Isn't Layton a trained dancer?" Melanie Griffith echoed: "Isn’t he ….. a dancer?" Charlie Farley commented: "But he’s a dancer. Is this going to be like it was with Ashley Roberts?"

And Catherine Bass added: "Surely he’s won AUTOMATICALLY?! He is such an outstanding dancer!"

But FionnODonnell7 disagreed, saying: "He isn’t trained in ballroom and Latin." JulietB3 echoed: "But Latin and ballroom will go against all the training he's had. The techniques are completely different. The only advantage is they maybe learn routines quicker. I have ballet and contemporary training. Could not get the yang of ballroom or Latin."

Actress Amanda Abbington and legendary newsreader Angela Rippon have also signed up to compete on the ballroom dancefloor next month.