A soap star, a former footballer and a comedian will compete for the glitterball trophy

It's that time of year again - the new series of 'Strictly Come Dancing' is almost upon us, and the names of the celebs that are taking part this year are beginning to trickle out.

Last night saw the first three celebs revealed on BBC One's 'The One Show', and at least one of them will be familiar to soap fans.

Emma Barton, who plays Honey Mitchell in 'Eastenders', will swap the Queen Vic for somewhere slightly more glam.

She'll be joined by former England goalkeeper David James, who until last year was managing a football team in India called Kerala Blasters:

And finally, Geordie comedian Chris Ramsey, most recognisable as the former host of 'Stand Up Central', will also be attempting to dance his way to glory...

The professionals were also revealed, with some familiar faces amongst the bunch shown in rehearsals yesterday - including Anton du Beke, AJ Pritchard, Neil Jones, Janette Manrara, Gorka Marquez and more.

More names will be revealed in the coming days and weeks, with rumours that Sam Allardyce, Jamie Laing and Anneka Rice are taking part this year after 'Good Morning Britain''s Iain Lee apparently accidentally leaking their names.

There's no official start date as yet, but the series usually starts in September, so watch this space.

UPDATE: YouTuber Saffron Barker has been confirmed as the fourth contestant, as revealed on Heart Radio this morning.