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Sacked soap star begs Strictly bosses for long-awaited chance to hit the dance floor

Former Hollyoaks star Sarah Jayne Dunn has launched a social media campaign to secure a spot on Strictly Come Dancing 2026

[Sarah Jayne Dunn]

The star has always wanted to compete on the BBC series(Image: sarahjaynedunn/Instagram)

Sarah Jayne Dunn has pleaded with Strictly Come Dancing bosses to cast her in this year's series. The 44-year-old actress, famous for her portrayal of Mandy Richardson on Channel 4's Hollyoaks, has harboured dreams of gracing the BBC's Saturday night sensation for years.

The former soap favourite, who was controversially dropped from her long-standing Mandy role after she started selling sultry images online in 2021, has initiated a social media crusade pledging to take weekly steps towards reaching the renowned dance floor.

In an Instagram video, she revealed: "I have had an idea, and it is either brilliant - or completely delusional. I'm not sure which one, but I'm gonna go with it. So I'm always encouraging you guys to try new things and push yourself out of your comfort zone and do things that scare you. So this is me doing that. I am manifesting Strictly 2026.

[Strictly Come Dancing]

Axed soap star begs Strictly Come Dancing bosses to sign her up

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"This is something that I've dreamt - dared to dream - about doing since Strictly Come Dancing was called Come Dancing. Who remembers those days?".

"I have always wanted to wear the beautiful dresses with the feathers and learn such a gorgeous skill. I love dancing, but the dancing that I do is not ballroom or Latin; I'm doing the Paso. There's a little girl inside of me, little Sarah, who will not be happy until she has been on Strictly Come Dancing so I'm putting it out there and I'm manifesting hard.", reports the Mirror.

"I need your help, support, and guidance on this one, guys. There's always been this little voice inside of me that says 'Not you, not this year.' But this year, 2026, I'm shutting that voice down. What have I got to lose?".

"What have I got to lose by putting myself out there and being vulnerable? It's something that I really, really, want. The worst-case scenario is that I do this series, I have fun, and I engage with you guys, and I learn some new skills.

"Best case scenario [sings the Strictly theme tune]...Help me with some ideas for this series. I've already got some, I'm gonna look for some ballroom classes, push myself out of my comfort zone. I'm gonna rope [my husband] Jon into doing stuff.

"Send me ideas and every week I'm gonna do something that will hopefully get me a step closer to being chosen to be a contestant on Strictly this year!".

[Sarah Jayne Dunn]

Hollyoaks star Sarah Jayne Dunn has begged Strictly bosses for a chance(Image: sarahjaynedunn/Instagram)

Should Sarah Jayne manage to bag herself a coveted spot on this year's series - which marks the first time in over a decade without presenting duo Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly leading the show - she'll be joining an impressive roster of Hollyoaks alumni who've graced the Strictly dance floor. Gemma Atkinson, who portrayed Lisa Hunter, secured the runner-up position in 2017 and found love with professional dancer Gorka Marquez during her time on the programme.

Chelsee Healey, now recognised by Hollyoaks fans as Goldie McQueen, had just wrapped up her stint as the outspoken student Janeece Bryant on BBC's Waterloo Road when she took part in Strictly in 2011. Danny Mac, known for his role as Dodger Savage, was a runner-up alongside Oti Mabuse in 2016.

Katie McGlynn had recently bid farewell to her character Sinead Tinker on Coronation Street when she joined the cast of Hollyoaks as Becky Quentin and subsequently competed in the 2021 series of Strictly.

Sarah Jayne's long-standing role on Hollyoaks abruptly ended in 2021 when the show's bosses decided against having any cast members active on adult websites. In a statement at the time, Channel 4 programme executives said: "Hollyoaks is a youth-facing drama with many young viewers, who follow our cast very closely, both in the soap and outside of it."

They added: "We take our responsibility to our young audience very seriously, and therefore, the show does not allow any Hollyoaks cast members to be active on certain 18+ websites.

"We had hoped we could reach a resolution with Sarah that would allow her to remain in her role as Mandy, but we respect her choice to continue to produce content on OnlyFans. In the past four years since her return to the show, her legacy character has been an integral part of some our most important storylines and we will be very sad to see her go."

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