From reality TV runner-up to ballroom dancing champion
In short: Abbey Clancy’s career trajectory is a masterclass in British media evolution. After nearly winning a modeling competition in 2006, she transformed from a high-fashion face into a versatile television personality, eventually conquering the ballroom and launching her own literary and design ventures.
Abbey Clancy first entered the public eye during the second cycle of Britain's Next Top Model in 2006. Competing as one of thirteen candidates over a ten-week period, the Liverpool-born model reached the final runway alongside Lianna Fowler, ultimately finishing as the runner-up. This early exposure launched a diverse modeling career that saw her featured on the covers of Arena, Esquire, and British Elle, as well as appearing in Sports Illustrated's 2010 swimsuit edition.
Her transition from the runway to mainstream entertainment reached a peak in 2013 when she won the eleventh series of Strictly Come Dancing. Partnered with Aljaž Škorjanec, Clancy achieved notable milestones during the competition, including receiving her first perfect scores in Blackpool and becoming the first couple that year to earn a perfect 40 during Musicals Week. Beyond the ballroom, she has navigated various media roles, from hosting the revival of Britain's Next Top Model to appearing in her own reality series, Abbey and Janice: Beauty and the Best.
Clancy's career has also been marked by significant public engagement and personal milestones. In 2012, she faced local criticism in Liverpool after becoming a beauty columnist for The Sun, a newspaper subject to a city-wide boycott following its coverage of the 1989 Hillsborough disaster. In more recent years, she has expanded into authorship with her 2016 novel, Remember My Name, and interior design, with ITV commissioning her show, Abbey Clancy's Celebrity Homes, in 2023.
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