Tess Daly to dance the Argentine tango in final Strictly appearance

Strictly Come Dancing co-host Tess Daly and professional dancer Aljaz Skorjanec will take to the dancefloor for an Argentine tango in the Christmas special of the BBC dancing competition.

The 56-year-old will hit the ballroom floor with Slovenian dancer, Skorjanec, 35, as a Christmas present from the judges during the Strictly Come Dancing festive special.

The pre-recorded episode will be the last hosting appearance from Daly and her co-host, Claudia Winkleman, who announced their joint departure in October.

Judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke will present Daly with the dance as a gift during the episode.

The special will also see Winkleman, 53, open a door to Dave Arch, the composer of the Strictly band, in a parody of Love Actually.

The presenter will be greeted by Arch, 63, holding large placards which read “say it’s carol singers” and “to me, you are perfect”, referencing a scene from the 2003 Christmas rom-com, during which Andrew Lincoln’s character, Mark, confesses his love to Juliet, played by Keira Knightley, in this way.

The Strictly Christmas special will see six celebrities battle it out to be crowned champion.

The contestants taking part include TV star Scarlett Moffatt, who is paired with professional dancer Vito Coppola, All Saints singer Melanie Blatt, who is dancing with Kai Widdrington and EastEnders star Nicholas Bailey, who is partnered with Luba Mushtuk.

Also in the special episode, actor and podcaster Babatunde Aleshe will perform with professional dancer Nancy Xu and Westlife singer Brian McFadden will dance with Michelle Tsiakkas, while Gladiator Jodie Ounsley is paired with Neil Jones.

The contestants will be judged by Ballas, Revel Horwood, Mabuse and Du Beke, although the voting studio audience will have the ultimate say over who wins.

The Strictly Christmas special will air on BBC One and iPlayer from 5.30pm on Christmas Day.