Strictly's sky-high costs exposed - from 500 dazzling costumes to new BBC chaperones

It's one of the BBC's biggest primetime hits, attracting millions of viewers each week and culminating in a glitterball finale - but behind the sequins and sambas, Strictly Come Dancing is an extraordinarily expensive operation. Central to the spectacle are the show's costumes - up to 500 of them each series - overseen by costume chief Vicky Gill, who has led the wardrobe department since 2012.

Gill, whose fashion CV includes work for Kylie Minogue, Girls Aloud and Dancing on Ice, begins planning the wardrobe in May, months before the celebrities take to the floor, reported the Daily Mail in 2021.Though she researches each contestant in advance, it's only when she meets them in the summer that she learns their individual preferences.

Some, like Viscountess Weymouth, had strong aversions to certain colours - in her case, purple - while others, like Anneka Rice, avoided pink entirely.

Once the series begins, costume production moves at a relentless pace. "It's very fast-paced; I feel like we all step on to a train back in August and then it picks up speed," Gill explained. The process runs on a tight seven- to ten-day cycle, starting on Thursday after the weekend's results show.

By Sunday night, Gill sketches out the silhouettes for the upcoming dances. Monday and Tuesday are spent quietly designing, while a team at the BBC studios handles buying, shoe requests and upkeep. By Tuesday morning, costumes begin to take shape, with bodices, skirts and underskirts assembled in stages.

Each costume takes between one and four days to complete, produced by the BBC wardrobe team and staff at DSI London, where Gill once worked as in-house designer. The dresses undergo fittings on Fridays, with three seamstresses and two embellishers joining rehearsals. Come Saturday, eight dressers are on hand for the live show.

The scale of materials is staggering. A heavily embellished dress can use around 12,000 crystals, chosen from 750 colours and sizes, with three million crystals applied across the series. 500 feet of feathers are used in total, with a single feather-laden gown requiring 33 feet. The team even have a name for feather application: "feather-ography".

Each ballroom dress uses 8 to 10 metres of synthetic fabric, such as Lycra, chosen for durability under stage conditions. Men's shirts are designed like adult romper suits to stay neatly tucked during energetic routines, while women's costumes include built-in bras and flesh-coloured panels for modesty and flexibility. Even fake tan is a major consideration - around 50 litres are used per series.

Despite the extravagance, Gill is known for being thrifty. A custom dance outfit from DSI can cost around £2,000 for a member of the public.

While Strictly doesn't reuse celebrities' costumes for other contestants, Gill often redesigns rarely used pieces for professional dancers' wardrobes. Some celebrities also buy their costumes after the series ends - Rose Ayling-Ellis, for example, kept the white leather boots from her samba routine.

According to The Times, on top of the wardrobe costs, the BBC has brought in two dedicated welfare producers and, since 2024, requires a member of the production team to be present in rehearsal rooms at all times. These new chaperones are expected to cost "several hundred thousand pounds" in additional expenditure.

Welfare costs for "big beasts" of TV can run to around £200,000, but producers say it's a necessary expense to protect contestants and the show's reputation. There will also be longer breaks and a focus on a "kinder" culture, all of which adds to production time and budget.

Then there's the matter of pay. While the BBC has never officially confirmed the figures, reports suggest celebrities receive a flat rate of £25,000, which increases to £45,000 if they make it past the early weeks.

Reaching the quarter-finals reportedly pushes this to £60,000, with finalists on £75,000 and the winner receiving £100,000 plus the glitterball trophy.

Professional dancers are said to earn between £35,000 and £50,000, not including extra income from tours.

Judges are paid considerably more: head judge Shirley Ballas reportedly negotiated her salary up to £500,000 per series, while Craig Revel Horwood earns around £200,000. Motsi Mabuse was reportedly offered £200,000 when she joined, and Anton Du Beke earns between £175,000 and £200,000.

Hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman are each thought to earn around £150,000 per series for presenting Strictly, though their total BBC earnings are significantly higher across other shows.

Strictly employs around 200 staff, and with 14 weeks of live competition, costume design, rehearsals, safeguarding and salaries, the sums soon mount up.

Yet despite ballooning budgets, the show remains one of the BBC's most important exports. Its format has been sold to more than 60 countries, helping fund the corporation's commercial arm.