Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Rachel Stevens are among the celebrities who have signed up for the 2014 'Strictly Come Dancing' Christmas special. The 'Murder on the Dancefloor' hitmaker and S Club 7 star are among the list of former contestants set to comp...

Brian Friedman has hinted at a lack of star quality on 'The X Factor'.
The 37-year-old choreographer has been reminiscing about the 2010 series of the ITV talent show - which was won by Matt Cardle - and suggested that while he's having a lot of fun as creative director this year, there aren't as many stand out contestants.
He said: "There is different reasons I like different seasons. I think because this one has been so fun from the beginning to now - it is one of my favourites.
"But the year we had Katie Waissel, Rebecca Ferguson, One Direction and Cher Lloyd, I felt like we had stars across the board.
"Everyone was incredible and could have won it."
However, one wannabe popstar from the current series that is standing out for him is 26-year-old Fleur East.
Brian told MailOnline: "Fleur is a stand out star. She is at that level and I could see her making it in America."
And he also thinks the rest of Simon Cowell's over-25s category will do well in the remaining weeks of the competition.
He added: "I think he [Simon] has a good chance of winning with someone like Ben Haenow.
"He could definitely make the final. Andrea [Faustini] is a shoe-in for the final and Fleur. If I could call my top four it would be Fleur, Ben, Andrea and Only The Young."

Jo Whiley watches 'Doctor Who' every Christmas.
The BBC Radio 1 presenter has confessed she and her family have lots of traditions for the festive season and on Christmas day they always make sure they've finished opening presents and eating their meal in time for the annual special episode of the BBC sci-fi series.
Quizzed on what her, husband Steve Morton and their children India, Coco, Cassius and Jude's Christmas day ritual entails, she exclusively told BANG Showbiz: "We all bundle downstairs on Christmas morning and see what Father Christmas has left under the tree. Then there will be a frenzy of ripping open presents, that will be the big ones that Father Christmas has left.
"Then we will try and get dinner ready. We will have a really nice breakfast so we have pancakes and bacon and we have a lovely Christmas breakfast.
"Then go for a walk, have dinner, then open the rest of the presents in the afternoon and we always have to be finished in time for Christmas 'Doctor Who'."
The 49-year-old star makes a Christmas playlist featuring tracks such as Slade's 'Merry Xmas Everybody' and The Pogues' 'Fairytale of New York' every year to sing along to while she's putting up the tree but admits her family are divided when it comes to deciding whether to put a star or an angel on the top.
She explained: "Oh my gosh, we have the biggest fall out. The family is completely split and every year there's tantrums and tears over whether we put a star or an angel at the top. Every year I dread it.
"We had two Christmas trees last year because I couldn't bare the arguments. My daughter wants an angel and my son wants a star."
Jo has teamed up with Currys PC World to experience their stylish range of home and multi-room audio products, perfect for the party season. Visit www.currys.co.uk/homeaudio for more information.

Bono cheated death yesterday (12.11.14) when a door fell off the private jet he was travelling in.
The U2 frontman was on board a Learjet 60 D-CGEO with four friends flying from Dublin, Ireland to Berlin, Germany when the tailgate of the plane became detached at 8,000ft, but the party - which did not include the rest of the group - didn't realise what had happened until they landed.
A source told the Irish Daily Mail newspaper: "He was extremely lucky, the plane could have gone down. About an hour into the journey they heard a big thud coming from the rear of the plane.
"They were startled for a bit but they continued on and made the descent into Berlin airport. When they landed they were horrified to learn that the compartment at the rear of the plane had completely detached.
"They were at an altitude where anything could have happened and they are all feeling very lucky to be alive."
As a result of the accident, Bono and his friends' luggage fell out of the plane.
The source added: "The entire door, along with Bono and his companions' luggage, had fallen out mid-air. They don't know if the door and the contents landed over water or land but they were extremely lucky."
Aviation authorities in Germany have launched an official investigation into the incident, and police and officials from the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Investigations Office were spotted scouring fields near the airport this morning (13.11.14) looking for the luggage and other debris.
Airport spokesman Ralf Kunkel said: "The jet landed safely and, according to our knowledge, there was no danger of a crash."
Bono - who had flown out early to meet with Germany's development minister Gerd Mueller - and the rest of U2 appeared later on Wednesday night performing at the Bambi movie awards in Berlin.

Jennifer Lawrence "cried" when she had to sing in 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1'.
The 24-year-old actress - who reprises her role of Katniss Everdeen in the latest installment of the futuristic fantasy saga - has hated singing in front of people since she was mocked for doing so as a child after being encouraged by her mother, who had told her she was "amazing".
She admitted: "I do not like singing in front of other people, that's like my biggest fear.
"I cried on set that day. I'm scarred from my childhood.
"I have a Southern mother that used to tell me I was amazing at everything and I could do everything, but I can't.
"I had this tone-deaf Amy Winehouse voice and I sang in front of the school when I was eight, because I thought I could.
"My dad laughed for the entire week! I'd hear him around the house, imitating me. I hate it, I hate it!"
Despite her concerns, Jennifer's vocals were included in the final cut of the movie, though she admits she begged for a top singer to dub her singing.
Speaking on 'The Late Show With David Letterman', she joked: "I was like, 'Will you guys please get Lorde and lip-sync it?' "

Usher has changed since having children.
The 'OMG' hitmaker - who has sons Usher V, six, and Naviyd, five, with ex-wife Tameka Foster - admits he has grown stronger both because of his kids and also tragedies such as the death of Tameka's 11-year-old son Kile Glover in 2012.
He said: "Having children changes how you look at life, what matters, what's a priority. And then you have a few uphill battles - well, that makes you even more resilient."
The 36-year-old singer is a hands-on dad and loves spending as much time as possible with his two boys.
He told USA Today newspaper: "I'm with my children all the time in Atlanta. When I'm on tour, they come in and out.
"Usher's more active; I can be out in the park with him for two hours, just throwing a ball around. Naviyd loves to read, loves to see shows. I love to have him with me in New York."
Usher is currently on tour and managed to win over one of his toughest critics - his youngest son - at a show in Madison Square Gardens last week.
He laughed: "He was sitting with his grandma [and] he went from, 'I don't like your music' to 'I liked your show!' "

Jessica Chastain has joked Matthew McConaughey flirted with her grandmother more than she's "ever seen before".
The 37-year-old actress was shocked to find the 47-year-old actor laughing and joking with her relative at a screening of their new movie 'Interstellar' when her gran got so "star-struck" by Matthew and frantically started taking pictures of the hunky Academy Award-winner.
Speaking on an episode of 'Conan', which airs tonight (13.11.14), she said: "He flirted with her like I have never seen! They met at a screening of 'Interstellar' and my grandmother was so star-struck, and she kept saying, 'I want a selfie Matthew!'
"She then proceeded to do a photoshoot in front of everyone, she was like, 'You stand there,' and she just started taking pictures of Matthew.
"But then I took a picture of the two of them, and my God ... I don't think she even realised I was taking the picture."
But Matthew - who has been married to Camila Alves since 2012 - isn't the only star Jessica's grandmother has her eyes on as the flame-haired star explained 'Scarface' actor Al Pacino also caught her eye.
When asked if her family get star-struck around other celebrities, she replied: "I took my grandma, my very first big job was working with Al Pacino, and she took a picture with him and she framed it and put it next to her bed, so it was on her bedside table like ... Al Pacino."
Watch Jessica's interview on 'Conan', tonight at 11pm on truTV, freeview channel 68.

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