A Bury-born star will take to the stage for the upcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing this autumn.

Actor Layton Williams was the third celebrity contestant confirmed for the brand new series of the glittering dancing competition, now in its 21st series. 

Layton Williams, 28, is a film and theatre actor who has performed in London’s West End, giving performances as the title role in the stage production of Billy Elliot and Everyone’s Talking About Jamie.

He has appeared in a number of stage productions including Thriller Live, Rent, Hairspray and New Adventures.

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But Layton is best known on TV for playing Stephen Carmichael in the Bad Education film and recently rebooted series.

His other TV features include Beautiful People, Benidorm, The Cleaner, and I Hate Suzie.

Layton is also the voice over artist for the U.K's first gay dating show, I Kissed a Boy on BBC.

He runs his own performing arts company "Pros from the Shows" with hopes to inspire the next generation of performers.

Over the years he has been the recipient of multiple Black British Theatre Awards, plus an Attitude Award for his work and visibility in the LGBTQ+ community.

Layton said: "Absolutely buzzing to confirm that I will be taking part in THE most iconic dance competition in the UK! It's time to bring it to the Ballroom. So excited to learn new skills from the best. Bring on the sequins…all the sequins!"

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Strictly returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer for its new series this autumn, once again bringing glitter, glamour and glorious dancing to homes across the nation.