The Musicians’ Union (MU) has called upon Strictly Come Dancing to reinstate its original full band after it claimed the broadcaster reduced its numbers due to social distancing measures – failing to bring back members at the end of the coronavirus pandemic.
The live band – which is led by Dave Arch – was limited to its rhythm section, made up of seven musicians, whilst the rest of the music is pre-recorded in the studio during a three-hour session.
Hitting out at the show, the union did not “accept” the reason for Strictly needing to “cut corners in this way”, with one musician coming out and accusing the broadcaster of using “silhouetted areas that could be assumed to be positions of musicians present” to hide the smaller band.
The union claimed that the BBC offered a compromise of bringing back the full band for four episodes, however it wants it to return for the full series.
The last time Strictly used its full band for the whole series was in 2019, with Geoff Ellerby, MU’s national organiser for recording and broadcasting, noting: “Due to the Covid-19 crisis, some band members’ performances were pre-recorded as a necessary safety precaution, with a significantly reduced live band performing along to these backing tracks.
“We worked hard with broadcasters and studios in mitigating the risks to get musicians working under new restrictions, and although we agreed that following these temporary measures we would work towards normality as soon as possible, Strictly is refusing to re-instate the full live band.
Dave Arch leads the live band on the show
BBC
“Given it remains the BBC’s flagship entertainment show, and the very nature of the show has always been based on music and dance, this is a deeply disappointing move and one we can’t accept,” The Standard reported.
“Due to clever camera work by the production team, it may not have been obvious to viewers until now that the on-screen band has been reduced. We hope fans of the show will join our call to restore the full band of musicians to the production.”
Passionate about bringing the full live band back the union urged their fans to show their support on social media, and asked for the hashtag #KeepStrictlyLive to be used in their tweets.
It is understood that production budgets have meant the BBC will not bring the band back for the upcoming series as the MU has requested, with the broadcaster noting in a statement: “We are proud to be one of the last remaining shows to still use a live band and singers and remain committed to doing so.
The Musicians’ Union slammed the show for using sihilotte’s to make it look like a fuller band
BBC
“We advised the Musician’s Union recently that we’ll be increasing the use of the Strictly Come Dancing House Band’s brass section in the upcoming series for three live shows covering themed weeks such as movies and musicals and one other show to be confirmed – in addition to the annual visit to Blackpool.
“For editorial reasons, and to ensure the best value for money for audiences, we are unable to support a brass section for the entire series as we did pre-Covid.”
The Musicians’ Union slamming the series comes after it faced backlash for its “male heavy” line-up, with the broadcaster hitting back and defending the line-up.
Viewers will see DIY SOS star Nick Knowles, Olympic hockey champion Sam Quek, Love Island star Tasha Ghouri, Gladiators star Montell Douglas, Olympic swimmer Tom Dean, EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick, Miranda star Sarah Hadland, Singer Shayne Ward, The Only Way is Essex star Pete Wicks, TV doctor Punam Krishan, Singer Toyah Willcox, Singer Wynne Evans, JLS star JB Gill, and Comedian Chris McCausland.
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The full Strictly Come Dancing line-up
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After viewers branded the 20th-anniversary the “worst ever”, a BBC spokesperson Metro.co.uk: “We are really excited about this year’s line-up and look forward to the series starting.
“There are many factors that influence the casting process to ensure we have a good mix of celebrities from a broad range of backgrounds. There is no hard and fast rule regarding the gender split on the show and it’s never been about ticking boxes.”