Darts champion signed walk-on girls’ petition now PDC Dancers have fire breather and Love Island star thrilling fans
The PDC's dancers are helping make the World Darts Championship a spectacle that might even change Raymond van Barneveld's thinking.
The five-time champion was among thཧe 48,000 signatures that supported a opposing the removal of walk-on girls in 2018.
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Six years ago, PDC chairman Barry Hearn conceded walk-on girls were 'in danger of becoming incompatible with inclusive family viewing'.
"We speak to the players at exhibitions and at the time we had a massive support from players like Raymond van Barneveld, who couldn’t understand it either," former walkꦍ-on girl Charlotte Wood told in 2022.
"I speak to the players all the time at exhibitions and they don’t understand it either. But then they wouldn’t because as I said, we were there and then we weren’t. There was a petition started that got something like 50,000 signatures when Barnev꧅eld tweeted about it.
"🍌Wܫe had a lot of tweets off the players saying this shouldn’t be happening and asking why we’d lost our jobs."
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In their place at PDC events is a dazzling line-up of dancers to bring the glitz and glam to this year's tournament at Alexandra Palace.
Eight stars 𒅌are selected from 200 hopefuls, and they include a TikTo🐼k star to a fire-breather and even a former Hollyoaks actress.
Sophie May Lambert, who has over 45,000🐭 TikTok followers, debuted at Ally Pally in 2013 and is now team manager and choreographer.
The seasoned dancer 𒅌told : "We had over 200 girls apply which was incredible and then we had 100 turn up on the day."
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"There's a new direction in the team now, the team is growing as a brand - people wanna see the girls as well, they've got their own platform now, so come and see the girls.
"Within the dancer's industry, it's an achievement to become a PDC dancer!"
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Four new danc✃ers have been recruited for their debut in the 2024/25 tournament, including Imogen Bot🌌tomley.
The 5'11' brunette's 'talent stretches as high as her height' according to the PDC Darts Dancers social media pages.
Bottomley recently graduated from leading Vocational University Creative Academy before joining the Ally Pally crew in No𒐪vember.
Multi-skill performer Georgia Long has also made the cut and she might stand out on stag𝕴🐓e as a professional fire breather.
Fellow newcomer of the ܫgroup Ellie Jackson hails from🦩 Sheffield and will relish a homecoming performance in Yorkshire next year.
The fourth and final newbie is flexibility coach Lacey Edwards, who is the most recognisable to ෴casual fan🦋s jumping on the darts hype.
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Edwards was one of four bom🧔bshell arrivals to the Love Island villa during ♚the last few weeks of series eight in July 2022.
She revealed to ITV: "I’ve been dancing all over the world since I was 18 when I moved to France, I recently came to one of the ends of my contracts in France and I was like I am♎ really ready to meet someone and my friends were like why haven’t you applied for Love Island before you’re 🔴literally perfect for it."
The Swindon dancer was interested in Laura Woods' now-fiance Adam Collard and Luca Bish, who was coupled up with Michael Owen's daughter Gemma, but was ultimately voted out within a week.
Edwards told last year: "I was meant to go 🦋in as the first bomb♏shell then it went later and my flight kept getting delayed.
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Darts star Scot⛦t Williamꦅs takes on the infamous Ally Pally wasp
She added: "It was upsetting because I would have rather have been told 'We're thinking you're going to come on as the last bombshell' just so I could have made the decision if it was going to be worth it.
"But no, I wouldn't have done it."
Edwards is not the only PDC dancer with small-screen experience, as she joins൩ personal trainer and g🌊roup veteran Amy Kemp.
The Welsh star has enjoyed sma🌜ll cameos as an actress on Hollyoaks and Funny Girl, with prior roles 💧in a Betfred advert as well.
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Kemp is no stranger to joining viral darts ace Ricky Evans in captivating the crowd on stage.
She : "My favourite interactions with the players are when they join in with us on st🍒age dancing. We love a good YMCA with Ricky!"ꦓ;
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Kemp is joined by her Wales countrywoman Jodie Stubbings, who has been described as the 'resident comedian' on the tour.
The final PD💜C dance🌊r in the eight is Londoner Abbi Haynes, who has been with the team since 2017 and is now Dance Captain.
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