Heartbreaking reason why Strictly’s Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly aren’t in costume for Halloween special

Strictly speaking, viewers have been wondering why presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman weren’t dressed in costume for Saturday night’s Halloween special.

While the celebrities and judges were dressed from head to toe in remarkable costumes, eagle-eyed fans quickly noticed that both Tess and Claudia were wearing their usual glamorous dresses.

Tess and Claudia haven’t worn costumes on Halloween since Claudia’s daughter Matilda was burned to death in a horrific accident in 2014.

Matilda was just eight years old when she suffered severe burns after her costume brushed a candle and set her on fire while trick or treating.

At the time of the accident, Claudia temporarily stopped hosting Strictly Come Dancing and became an avid campaigner for the safety and regulations surrounding the materials used in children’s fancy dress costumes.

Lady in red: Strictly viewers have wondered why presenters Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly weren’t dressed in costume for Saturday night’s Halloween special

Glam: Hosts Tess and Claudia were out of costume for Saturday night’s Halloween special, opting instead for lace and sequin dresses for the spooky night of the year

About the painful moment of the accident, Claudia previously said: “I don’t like Halloween, because three years ago it turned out that our screams were real.

“She ‘went up’ is the only way I can describe it – it was a spark and she screamed out for me.

“It was like those horrible birthday candles that you blow out and they come back. It was really fast. It was absolutely life-changing for me.”

‘I was talking to someone and then I heard her screaming and she was on fire. It feels like she’s been on fire for hours, but the surgeon said it was probably just seconds.”

The star shares Matilda with husband of 23 years Chris Thykier. She also has sons Jake and Arthur.

Viewers turned to X, formerly known as Twitter, to wonder why the presenters weren’t in costume.

One fan wrote: ‘Well the judges look good, why haven’t Tess and Claudia dressed up.’

Others said: ‘Tess and Claudia have to dress up, the rest do too. It’s a shame they don’t #strictly’ and ‘Why do the #Strictly judges always dress up for Halloween, but Tess and Claudia don’t?’

Beautiful: Claudia wore a black lace dress with large puff sleeves, while Tess opted for a red mini dress with sequins and fringes

Shock: In 2014, Claudia’s daughter (pictured with her father Kris Thykier in 2013), then eight, suffered severe burns after her Halloween costume brushed a candle and set her on fire

Eagle-eyed fans: While the celebrities and judges were dressed from head to toe in remarkable costumes, some viewers were quick to notice that neither Tess nor Claudia were

Strike a pose: Claudia took to Instagram ahead of the show to show off her black dress with puff sleeves

Dressing up: Judges Anton du Beke, Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas and Motsi Mabuse all embraced the spooky atmosphere as they dressed up in elaborate and chilling ensembles

Judges Anton du Beke, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse and Shirley Ballas all embraced the spooky atmosphere as they dressed up in elaborate and hair-raising ensembles to celebrate the Latin and Ballroom Show’s annual Spooktacular event.

Craig took on the role of the stern and terrifying Severus Snape from Harry Potter, while Motsi impressed with her spider-inspired attire, with a huge spider web adorning her head.

Anton, on the other hand, transformed into a brilliant but mad scientist, and head judge Shirley Ballas made a standout appearance as the evil queen from Snow White, perfectly fitting the night’s spooky theme.

This week, Angela Scanlon and professional dancer Carlos Gu kicked off Strictly’s Halloween Week with a Black Swan pasodoble to Swan Lake.

Waterloo Road’s Adam Thomas and his partner Luba Mushtuk performed Perry Como’s American Smooth to Magic Moments, while Annabel Croft and Johannes Radebe took on INXS’s Tango to Need U Tonight.

Angela Rippon and Kai Widdrington danced a Charleston to the theme song Murder She Wrote and Bobby Brazier and Dianne Buswell did the Cha Cha to Come-On-A-My-House by Della Reese.

Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola took on a Salsa to Murder On The Dancefloor by Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Lauren Oakley performed a Viennese Waltz to Kiss From A Rose by Seal, while Layton Williams and his partner Nikita Kuzmin performed a Tango performed to Vampire by Olivia Rodrigo.

Nigel Harman and Katya Jones had some negative comments about their Cha Cha, which saw them dancing to I Was Made For Lovin’ You by KISS.

Last week’s dance-off survivors, Zara McDermott and Graziano Di Prima, took on the Charleston to Jeepers Creepers of Al Donahue and his Orchestra.