Alex Joseph “AJ” Pritchard(born 5 November 1994)^[1]is a British dancer and choreographer, best known for his role as a professional dancer in theBBC Onedance seriesStrictly Come Dancing.^[2]In 2013, Pritchard auditioned for the seventh series ofBritain’s Got Talentalong with his partner Chloe Hewitt and reached the semi-finals.

Pritchard was born in Sneyd Green,Stoke-on-Trent.^[3]He began dancing at the age of 12, and his parents partnered him with Chloe Hewitt from their dance school. Together, they have represented Britain in dance competitions around the world, and won the National Youth Latin Championships for three consecutive years between 2012 and 2014. In 2015, AJ & Chloe also became the British Open Youth Latin Champions and the European Youth Latin Champions.^[4]

In 2013, Pritchard and his professional dance partner Chloe Hewitt auditioned forBritain’s Got Talent, receiving acclaim from the judges and audience. The pair eventually reached the live semi-finals.

AJ has a younger brother, Curtis, a fellow professional, who appears onDancing with the Starsin Ireland and has toured with Natalie Lowe, Louis Smith andJay McGuinessin the stage showRip It Up.^[5]

In September 2018 Pritchard took part in BBC’sCelebrity MasterChef^[6]leaving the show after his apple crumble infuriated the judges.^[7]

In October 2018 he partnered Louis Smith in the celebrity version ofHunted, in aid of Stand Up to Cancer. Pritchard and Smith split up during the series, leading to Smith being caught on Day 9 and Pritchard eventually going on to win the show on Day 14, alongside MP Johnny Mercer.

In July 2019, it was announced that Pritchard, along with his brother Curtis, would appear as guest choreographers on the BBC Three reality seriesRuPaul’s Drag Race UK.^[8][9]

In 2016 Pritchard appeared as a professional in the BBC dance show,Strictly Come Dancingfor its fourteenth series.^[10]He was partnered with Olympic artistic gymnastClaudia Fragapane. They were eliminated in the semi-finals on 11 December 2016, finishing in 4th place overall. In his first series, Pritchard received praise for his innovative choreography.^[11]

Pritchard returned toStrictlythe following year for his second series, and was partnered with Mollie King, a singer and former member of girl group The Saturdays. The pair made it to week 12, being knocked out at the semi-final stage and finishing in 5th place overall.

In his third series, in 2018, he was partnered with British Paralympic athlete Lauren Steadman. They were eliminated at the semi-final stage, finishing in 5th place, in Pritchard’s third consecutive semi-final elimination.

In March 2019, Pritchard was confirmed to be returning toStrictlyfor his fourth series. He was confirmed to be partnering with vlogger, Saffron Barker. They are currently participating.

On 27 December 2018, Pritchard and his brother Curtis, along with two others, were attacked in an “unprovoked assault” on a night out in Nantwich. Pritchard suffered bruising to his face, arms, legs and body, while Curtis needed an emergency operation to his knee and would no longer appear onDancing with the Starsin Ireland in January 2019.