🔗 Share this article Strictly Come Dancing Winners Crowned in Glitzy Live Finale This piece covers the result of the Strictly Come Dancing 2025 culminating event. View: Scene Strictly 2025 winners are declared Former Lioness Karen Carney has been crowned this year's Strictly champion, becoming the first professional soccer player to lift the coveted trophy. She overcame Love Islander Amber Davies and online influencer George Clarke after winning the public vote in Saturday's grand finale. Carney, who was paired with professional dancer Carlos Gu, remarked: "This is incredible, it's been the greatest honour," before adding she was "lost for words". It was an poignant night in the studio, as hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly fronted the final for the last time - with Queen Camilla among those offering praise to the veteran hosts. Hosts Tess and Claudia say goodbye to Strictly Come Dancing In a message presented by judge Craig Revel Horwood, the Queen said Daly and Winkleman's "kindness, empathy and pure joy" had been at the heart of the show's success, stating: "I think I speak for everyone when I say you have been utterly wonderful". Karen Carney and Carlos Gu with the glitterball trophy - their football-themed jive to 'One Way Or Another' by Blondie earned them a rapturous applause. As usual, one of the dances in the final show was selected by the judges, one was their own preferred dance from the competition, and the other was a show dance. The judges gave advisory scores but the public made the ultimate choice. Carney and Gu executed dances including a show dance to 'Inner Smile' by Texas, and an tango to 'Red Right Hand' by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. They also performed a football-themed jive to 'One Way Or Another' by Blondie, garnering them a rapturous reception - and their second perfect score of the night. Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin were the first couple to step onto the stage in the final. But the winning duo faced fierce rivalry from the other remaining couples. Amber Davies and her partner, Nikita Kuzmin, were the first to grace the stage. The pair delivered dances including a freestyle to 'Rain On Me' by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, a Paso Doble to 'Dream On' by Aerosmith, and a jive to 'Proud Mary'. In another performance, George Clarke and his partner Alexis Warr reprised their Paso Doble to 'Game of Survival' by Ruelle. They also did their show dance to 'Human' by The Killers, and a classical waltz to 'Somebody to Love' by Queen. But after weeks of ballroom dances, it was Carney and Gu's night as they won the public vote. "My sincere thanks go to everybody that has backed our journey, and supported us," said Carney. Gu told her she had "been transformative," commenting: "To the young people watching at home, dream big and be confident and never give up." Influencer George Clarke and Alexis Warr opted to repeat their signature dance from the series, a powerful routine to 'Game of Survival' by Ruelle. Other memorable moments on the night included the majority of the contestants of 2025 coming back for one more routine. However, social media personality Thomas Skinner did not attend. He had alleged earlier that the vote that saw him leave the show was unfair. A representative denied the allegation, saying the show's public vote was "externally monitored and verified to ensure total accuracy". The group Five also performed a string of their hits during the grand final. Tess and Claudia's Last Show An image from the emotional final presentation by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. In October, Daly and Winkleman made the shock announcement that they would be leaving their roles at the end of this year's season. Daly has presented since the first series 21 years ago. Winkleman joined in 2014, having hosted Strictly's sister show It Takes Two since 2004. This was their last time presenting a Strictly final, and both were overcome with emotion as they said their goodbyes. During the televised event, as well as the message from the Queen, there were messages from TV cook Mary Berry, members of the production team and devotees of the show. The Queen's message read: "It has often seemed to me that Strictly is not so much a show about dancing as about relationships: the connections created, the struggles conquered and the happiness experienced in undertaking a joint challenge. "If that is true, then perhaps yours has been the greatest Strictly partnership of all. "The warmth, compassion and pure joy you have projected with and from each other has been at the centre of the show's appeal." Daly and Winkleman's final show will be the holiday episode, which is broadcast on 25 December.
This piece covers the result of the Strictly Come Dancing 2025 culminating event. View: Scene Strictly 2025 winners are declared Former Lioness Karen Carney has been crowned this year's Strictly champion, becoming the first professional soccer player to lift the coveted trophy. She overcame Love Islander Amber Davies and online influencer George Clarke after winning the public vote in Saturday's grand finale. Carney, who was paired with professional dancer Carlos Gu, remarked: "This is incredible, it's been the greatest honour," before adding she was "lost for words". It was an poignant night in the studio, as hosts Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly fronted the final for the last time - with Queen Camilla among those offering praise to the veteran hosts. Hosts Tess and Claudia say goodbye to Strictly Come Dancing In a message presented by judge Craig Revel Horwood, the Queen said Daly and Winkleman's "kindness, empathy and pure joy" had been at the heart of the show's success, stating: "I think I speak for everyone when I say you have been utterly wonderful". Karen Carney and Carlos Gu with the glitterball trophy - their football-themed jive to 'One Way Or Another' by Blondie earned them a rapturous applause. As usual, one of the dances in the final show was selected by the judges, one was their own preferred dance from the competition, and the other was a show dance. The judges gave advisory scores but the public made the ultimate choice. Carney and Gu executed dances including a show dance to 'Inner Smile' by Texas, and an tango to 'Red Right Hand' by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. They also performed a football-themed jive to 'One Way Or Another' by Blondie, garnering them a rapturous reception - and their second perfect score of the night. Amber Davies and Nikita Kuzmin were the first couple to step onto the stage in the final. But the winning duo faced fierce rivalry from the other remaining couples. Amber Davies and her partner, Nikita Kuzmin, were the first to grace the stage. The pair delivered dances including a freestyle to 'Rain On Me' by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, a Paso Doble to 'Dream On' by Aerosmith, and a jive to 'Proud Mary'. In another performance, George Clarke and his partner Alexis Warr reprised their Paso Doble to 'Game of Survival' by Ruelle. They also did their show dance to 'Human' by The Killers, and a classical waltz to 'Somebody to Love' by Queen. But after weeks of ballroom dances, it was Carney and Gu's night as they won the public vote. "My sincere thanks go to everybody that has backed our journey, and supported us," said Carney. Gu told her she had "been transformative," commenting: "To the young people watching at home, dream big and be confident and never give up." Influencer George Clarke and Alexis Warr opted to repeat their signature dance from the series, a powerful routine to 'Game of Survival' by Ruelle. Other memorable moments on the night included the majority of the contestants of 2025 coming back for one more routine. However, social media personality Thomas Skinner did not attend. He had alleged earlier that the vote that saw him leave the show was unfair. A representative denied the allegation, saying the show's public vote was "externally monitored and verified to ensure total accuracy". The group Five also performed a string of their hits during the grand final. Tess and Claudia's Last Show An image from the emotional final presentation by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman. In October, Daly and Winkleman made the shock announcement that they would be leaving their roles at the end of this year's season. Daly has presented since the first series 21 years ago. Winkleman joined in 2014, having hosted Strictly's sister show It Takes Two since 2004. This was their last time presenting a Strictly final, and both were overcome with emotion as they said their goodbyes. During the televised event, as well as the message from the Queen, there were messages from TV cook Mary Berry, members of the production team and devotees of the show. The Queen's message read: "It has often seemed to me that Strictly is not so much a show about dancing as about relationships: the connections created, the struggles conquered and the happiness experienced in undertaking a joint challenge. "If that is true, then perhaps yours has been the greatest Strictly partnership of all. "The warmth, compassion and pure joy you have projected with and from each other has been at the centre of the show's appeal." Daly and Winkleman's final show will be the holiday episode, which is broadcast on 25 December.