Strictly Come Dancing will reportedly return to its normal format this year after the 2020 series was severely affected by coronavirus.
The pandemic resulted in several huge changes to the format - including reducing the series length from 13 weeks to just nine, ditching the annual trip to Blackpool and axing the live studio audiences.
The UK is now in the very early stages on the road to recovery, however, with the vaccine programme now having jabbed more than half of the adult population, while the government has gradually begun easing tough social distancing restrictions.
According to The Sun, producers have informed the crew and professional dancers of a provisional timetable for this year's Strictly, which will tentatively begin on September 25 on BBC One.
The mid-series Blackpool jaunt is pencilled in for November 20 and the grand finale will take place one week before Christmas on December 18.
"Strictly and the BBC set the gold standard last year in terms of putting a show on during a pandemic," a source told the newspaper.
"They worked incredibly hard and they managed to keep instances of COVID-19 right down. There were rigorous protocols in place.
"They're going to use what they learned to put on a full series this year. That means 13 episodes will be returning - and all of the themed weeks.
"The pinnacle will be the trip to Blackpool and that's always been the way on Strictly. As things stand, the whole show will head to the North West in November. Everyone is really excited."
The BBC has already confirmed that the entire contingent of professional dancers from 2020 will be returning in 2021, while over the weekend, a report claimed that producers are determined to feature an all-male couple in the lineup for the first time in the show's history.
Neil Wilkes
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