Oti Mabuse admits ‘it’s time’ as she makes huge Strictly move three years after exit

Former Strictly Come Dancing professional Oti Mabuse has revealed that she is letting go of some of her bedazzled costumes three years after leaving the BBC show. The 34-year-old professional dancer shot to fame in the UK when she joined the cast of the dance competition back in 2015.

During her time on the long-running show she has taken home the coveted glitterball trophy with two different celebrity partners. The first year she won the show was back in 2019 with former Emmerdale star Kelvin Fletcher. The new mum made history when she won the show the following year with comedian Bill Bailey, making him the oldest contestant to lift the glittering trophy.

In 2022, the star decided to pack up her dancing shoes in search for a new role on the small screen, which she found on the judging panel of rival dance competition, Dancing on Ice, just months later.

Now, the award-winning dancer has decided to let go of some of her Strictly memorabilia to mark 10 years since she joined the BBC programme. Oti has teamed up with eBay for their new List to £1k Spring Cleaning Challenge in a bid to help Brits unlock the value in their homes.

As part of the campaign, the TV personality has decided to sell some of her old shoes and costumes she kept from the show and donate the funds to charity. Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, the TV star explained her reason behind selling her show costumes.

She told us: “I think it’s time. I’m not wearing them, and they were so amazing and they have such an amazing piece of my heart, but I know the fans would absolutely love it.

"But it’s not everything, it’s like shoes, some costumes, but not all. It’s mostly shoes because we have so many shoes, boxes and boxes of shoes. And I’m so grateful that eBay was like, ‘Hey, you can put some of these things up’ so I don’t have to throw them away.

“The money that I will be making will be going to some of the charities that I’m passionate about. So, they’re going to somebody who will love them and appreciate them, and hopefully even wear them or frame them.

The campaign aims to encourage 80 per cent of people who admit to having unused items in their homes to make some extra cash by selling them on the popular retail website.

Speaking about her passion for the campaign, Oti gushed: "I love to clean, it gives me a sense of freedom and for my mental health and my mental space to know that where I'm resting at home is somewhere I can relax and feel myself.

"For me, working with people like eBay and this campaign of spring cleaning and taking out some of the times that I don't use anymore in my life and putting them up and knowing that they're going to somewhere safe and they're going to be loved so that I can spring clean and have my space is something that I enjoy as well."