near the studios and the pro dancers learnt and filmed all the group routines for the series at once. This allowed for the show to still include the professional group dances each week. On 21 August 2020, it was announced that Bruno Tonioli would not be on the judging panel but would appear virtually while he filmed Dancing with the Stars in the US. It was the first series since 2012 to begin in October. On 12 November 2020, Nicola Adams and Katya Jones were forced to withdraw from the competition after Jones tested positive for COVID-19. On 19 December 2020, Bill Bailey and Oti Mabuse were crowned the winners of the series, making Mabuse the second professional dancer to win the show twice and the first to win it consecutively, following her 2019 victory. This series featured the first all-female and same-sex partnership of Nicola Adams and Katya Jones. Series 19 (2021) On 10 June 2021, it was announced that Janette Manrara would leave the show as a professional dancer and replace Zoe Ball as a new It Takes Two presenter. On 24 June, Anton Du Beke was announced as having joined the judging panel for this series instead of returning as a professional dancer, replacing Bruno Tonioli, who missed a second year due to continuing travel restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the remaining fourteen professional dancers from Series 18, all of whom returned for this series, four new professional dancers joined the show: Cameron Lombard, Jowita Przystał, Kai Widdrington and Nikita Kuzmin. This series marked the first time that two contestants withdrew from the competition. On 13 October 2021, Robert Webb withdrew from the competition due to health reasons. On 17 December 2021, AJ Odudu was forced to pull out of the final after tearing a ligament in her right ankle. The series saw the first couple with a deaf contestant, actress Rose Ayling-Ellis and the first all-male partnership of John Whaite and Johannes Radebe. These contestants all reached the final and they finished as the winner and runner-ups respectively. Series 20 (2022) On 22 February 2022, Oti Mabuse announced that she was leaving the show after seven years. On 28 March 2022, it was announced that Aljaž Škorjanec was leaving after nine years of competing on the show. In addition to the remaining sixteen professional dancers from Series 19, all would return in