Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe have made their debut as the new hosting team on Strictly Come Dancing – but the revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for, while fans questioned the ‘awkward’ three-presenter format.On Saturday, the pre-recorded launch show peaked at 5.8 million viewers, according to overnight figures, up slightly on last year’s peak of 5.6 million. However, the episode averaged at 5.3 million viewers, down from 5.4 million in 2025. While the peak figure represents a small rise on last year, it remains well below the figures recorded before the programme was hit by a series of controversies.This includes allegations about the treatment of celebrity contestants and the culture behind the scenes, leading to the departure of professional dancers Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima and prompting the BBC to introduce tougher welfare measures.Prior to the string of scandals, the Strictly launch peaked at 6.7 million viewers and averaged 6.3 million in 2023.Bosses will have hoped that a fresh format and new hosting line-up could tempt lapsed viewers back to the BBC One favourite. However, the overnight figures suggest the changes have yet to produce a significant ratings resurgence. Josh Widdicombe, Emma Willis and Johannes Radebe have made their debut on Strictly – but the revamped line-up failed to deliver the ratings boost BBC bosses had hoped for On Saturday, the pre-recorded launch show peaked at 5.8 million viewers, according to overnight figures, up slightly on last year’s peak of 5.6 millionPre-recorded last week, the episode opened with a dance number from the professionals, including the five new dancers, as well as the judges and the new hosts.The 15 nervous celebrities also found out who they will be dancing with for, potentially, 13 weeks as they vie for the Glitterball trophy.Willis, Widdicombe and Radebe have taken over from Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman, who left the BBC show at the end of the 2025 series.Widdicombe admitted he was nervous as the new series got under way, telling viewers: ‘It’s a little bit overwhelming to be here but we are so excited…’ Willis added: ‘We cannot wait to spend the next 13 weeks with all of you.’And viewers were quick to react to the presenting team on social media.Willis was widely praised, with one fan hailing her as ‘the goddess of British TV’ as she opened the show in a plunging, glittering dress.But others questioned the decision to have three presenters, with viewers pointing out the format seems ‘awkward and forced’. That represents a small rise on last year, but remains well below the figures recorded before the programme was hit by a series of controversies’Why does it need 3 presenters? It just doesn’t work,’ one wrote on X.Widdicombe also came in for criticism, with some viewers claiming he appeared ‘out of his depth’.Meanwhile, ITV made a tactical scheduling change to avoid a direct clash between The Voice and the Strictly launch.The Voice began at 6.10pm rather than its usual 7pm slot, while Strictly started at 7.25pm.However, the singing competition, which Willis has hosted since 2014, was unable to match Strictly’s numbers, peaking at two million viewers and averaging 1.6 million.This means the ITV show, which has been marred in controversy after it emerged coach Tom Jones had been dropped, lost half a million viewers from the previous week.Willis will spend several weeks going head-to-head with herself on primetime television, and on Saturday, across the two programmes, she helped draw a combined audience of around seven million viewers.One source previously told The Mail on Sunday: ‘For Emma and her team, it is quite an achievement for her to be on primetime ITV1 and BBC One at the same time. She is a seasoned presenter and is very well respected by the crews she works with.’A BBC insider added: ‘Strictly bosses absolutely love Emma already, they’ve started working closely with her now production is in full swing, but can see that it is an awkward situation for her to be in.‘But they know that they are the bigger show and will attract many more viewers than The Voice.’Strictly will return for its first live show of the new series next Saturday at 6.15pm on BBC One and iPlayer.