The favourites to win this year’s Strictly Come Dancing

BBC’s popular TV series Strictly Come Dancing is underway, and this year’s edition has been just as unpredictable as 2020 in general. EastEnders star Maisie Smith was the pre-show favourite, but with four different couples topping the leaderboard in the first four weeks, some stunning performances and a couple of shock exits – including that of Nicola Adams and Katya Jones, due to the latter testing positive for Covid-19 – the Strictly Come Dancing odds have chopped and changed relentlessly.

So, let’s take a look at how things stand in the current betting market. Read on to find out more!

Bill Bailey – 4/6

When the Strictly line-up was first revealed, many people would have expected funny man Billy Bailey to be somewhat of a comedy act – cast in to make a fool of himself for the viewers’ entertainment. However, the 55-year-old’s performances to date have been quite the opposite, and he’s now the favourite to win the competition. Bailey and his partner, Oti Mabuse – who won last year’s show with former Emmerdale actor Kelvin Fletcher – were joint-second on the leaderboard, with their twist on Rapper’s Delight by The Sugarhill Gang earning a 10 – their first of the show – two nines and an eight from the judges.

HRVY – 4/1

At 4/1, singer/presenter HRVY is Bailey’s nearest contender in the betting market. The 21-year-old and his partner Janette Manrara instantly wowed the judges, with the pair scoring a nine in their first week, leaving them at the top of the leaderboard, whilst an impressive Viennese Waltz in week two saw them finish second. However, an under-par Cha Cha in week three saw them slip down to fifth, but they bounced back with a strong performance last week, when doing a saucy Salsa to BTS’ Dynamite, which saw them climb back to joint-second in the leaderboard.

Clara Amfo – 9/2

It’s fair to say that Radio 1 DJ Clara Amfo didn’t have the best of starts to the series. Her and her partner Aljaž Škorjanec scored 18, 17 and 20 in the first three weeks, but pulled it out of the bag in week four, with their Charleston stunning the judges and picking up a very respectable score of 29 – the joint highest individual score of the series thus far. That score shot Amfo and Škorjanec to the top of the leaderboard, once again proving that this is one of the most unpredictable series in the show’s 16-year history.

Maisie Smith – 7/1

The EastEnders star may have started the show as the favourite, but she is a long way off the pace in the betting market now. Smith and Gorka Márquez were second in week one, before taking the top spot in week two. They were joint-third in week three, but stuttered last week, and were shockingly dropped into the bottom two. The soap actress looked confident in her dance off against The Wanted’s Max George, and as a result, it was the singer who was sent packing.

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Good Morning Britain presenter and journalist Ranvir Singh is next in line at 13/1, whilst Made in Chelsea star Jamie Laing is currently 33/1. Presenter JJ Chalmers is further back in the betting at 100/1.