Strictly Come Dancing 2023: How old is Les Dennis? Meet the contestant - was he married to Amanda Holden?

The latest series of BBC One dance show Strictly Come Dancing is just around the corner, with anticipation continuing to grow. The show is back after a landmark 20th season in 2022, with the lineup regarded as one of the best ever.

Recently, the start date for the show was confirmed with fans getting to see the show air for the first time in 2023 on Saturday, September 16. The start date comes just weeks after the class of 2023 was revealed.

A person sure to catch the eye of many is TV legend Les Dennis. The 69-year-old is arguably best known for presenting the popular show Family Fortunes for 15 years from 1987 until 2002.

Dubbed as a Television presenter, actor and comedian, Les held down a weekend job at Burton whilst still at school, and made his first in-roads into comedy as he started as a stand-up comedian in working men’s clubs.

His big breakthrough arguably came in 1982, when he joined as one of the teams on Russ Abbot’s Madhouse and The Russ Abbot Show, before forming a comedy partnership with fellow impressionist Dustin Gee.

The duo had a series of their own, The Laughter Show. Despite Gee’s death in 1986, Dennis continued the show on his own and became the host of Family Fortunes a year later in 1987, which made him a household name.

Dennis has been married three times, and his most famous marriage was to Amanda Holden in 1995. The pair were married for eight years and got divorced when Holden had an affair with the actor Neil Morrisey.