Sir Bruce Forsyth died aged 89 in 2017 (Picture: Getty/BBC)
Strictly Come Dancing viewers were left in floods of tears as the show honoured its late host, Sir Bruce Forsyth, in the BBC centenary special.
Sir Bruce enjoyed a career in entertainment for over 70 years before he died aged 89 in August 2017.
The jolly host lit up TV screens across the country each weekend as he fronted Strictly from 2004 until 2013, alongside Tess Daly, before stepping down in 2014 to reduce his workload.
However, the spirit of Sir Bruce lives on and he certainly hasn’t been forgotten inside the Strictly ballroom, as the show paid tribute in the magical opening number, which featured a whole host of BBC shows and theme songs.
Presenter Claudia Winkleman hailed the routine ‘the most ambitious opening routine ever,’ as it included 32 BBC stars and 14 TV programmes, alongside the cast of professional dancers.
The footage, of course, featured a clip of BBC stars Sir Bruce and Come Dancing host Sir Terry Wogan, as well as references to University Challenge and EastEnders.
A clip of Sir Bruce and Sir Terry Wogan was featured as the show paid tribute to the late TV icons (Picture: BBC)
Alongside a clip of Sir Bruce doing his thing were cameos from newsreader Huw Edwards, and weather reporter Owain Wyn Evans, who played the drums.
Judge Motsi Mabuse also got in on the action, as she got flipped while sitting in Graham Norton’s show’s famous red chair.
Praising the wonderful routine on Twitter, former Strictly pro James Jordan tweeted that it was a ‘great nod’ to the ‘amazing’ Sir Bruce.
The number was packed with BBC stars and theme songs (Picture: PA)
The elaborate opening routine even saw an appearance fm Pudsey! (Picture: A)
‘You can just imagine Bruce in the middle of all of this. Miss him so much,’ wrote one viewer.
Another hailed Sir Bruce ‘Mr Saturday Night,’ adding that Strictly ‘isn’t the same’ without him.
‘Not me bursting into tears at Bruce,’ penned an emotional viewer, with others said it was ‘lovely to see’ the former host on their screen, in a nod to his iconic catchphrase.
Sir Bruce hosted Strictly alongside Tess Daly until 2013 (Picture: Karwai Tang/WireImage)
This weekend’s show was certainly one for the Strictly history books, as the couples danced to theme songs from classic BBC shows.
We had a couple’s choice from Molly Rainford to the Grange Hill theme tune, a Doctor Who-inspired tango from Tyler West, and a Blue Peter Charleston from former children’s TV presenter Helen Skelton.
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The judges loved Helen’s cheeky Charleston so much that she found herself in the top two on the leaderboard, along with Hamza Yassin.
Down the other end, sadly, was Tony Adams, as the Arsenal legend received 19 points after his cha cha to the Grandstand theme tune with partner Katya Jones.
Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturday and Sunday on BBC One.
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