HE is wealthy, good-looking, has a stunning girlfriend and – thanks to millions of social media fans – George Clarke is now a favourite to win Strictly Come Dancing.
But as he prepares for tomorrow night’s quarter final, the 26-year-old can be confident he has already won over viewers of the
BBC One dance show, despite most of them having no idea who he was just three months ago.
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George Clarke, who has millions of social media fans, has reached the quarter finals of Strictly Come Dancing Credit: PA
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George Clarke on The Useless Hotline podcast with Max BalegdeCredit: Spotify
That is because he is among the new generation of online influencers flooding our screens, considered by telly execs to be the saviours of some of their biggest shows.
In a world where ratings remain critical, they are recruiting stars instantly recognisable to younger generations, who spend hours on social media and mostly view programmes on catch-up.
A Strictly insider said: “With more and more people migrating from watching telly live to watching it on demand, the real battleground these days is on iPlayer or ITVX or other streaming services.
“To compete there, you need to focus on the younger viewers who traditionally use catch-up, and they’re exactly the sort of people who already follow influencers in huge numbers.
“We’re essentially trying to colonise the
next generation of viewers with what we know will appeal to them.
“And the beauty of influencers is that as producers, we have a clearer idea of what we’re getting because thanks to all their videos, comments and posts, we get some idea of what sort of person they are.
Evolution of fame
“All their pros and cons are there to be viewed — not something you necessarily get with other celebrities.
“Once you’ve got a cut of their jib, then you can say, ‘Right, this person will appeal to
football fans’ or, ‘This person will be a bit of a pin-up’.
“It’s a bit of a gift in many ways, not least because it also means you get some idea of who’s best avoided.”
On Sunday night, George — who is dating lingerie model Yasmin Bennett — will find out if he’s made it through to Strictly’s semi-finals.
Hours later, another huge influencer, Angry Ginge — real name Morgan Burtwistle — also stands a good chance of triumphing on I’m A
Celebrity . . . Get Me Out of Here!
He entered the jungle with millions of backers, including strangers who watch his online content — plus showbiz pals such as former England footballer Wayne Rooney and
darts ace Luke Littler.
Yet most people tuning in to the ITV show had probably not heard of him before.
I’m A Celeb has attracted several social media stars in recent years, including GK Barry and Nella Rose.
Elsewhere, influencer Niko Omilana was on The Celebrity Traitors and Amelia Dimoldenberg is about to get her own show on Apple TV.
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GK Barry, pictured with Coleen Rooney, was snapped up by TV bosses for I’m A Celeb Credit: Rex
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GK was known for her viral social media videos and hosting the podcast Saving GraceCredit: Getty
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Amelia Dimoldenberg, pictured at the The Fashion Awards 2025, is getting her own Apple show Credit: Getty
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Amelia, pictured with Sabrina Carpenter, is known for her web series Chicken Shop Date and deadpan, cringe-comedy interview styleCredit: instagram/ameliadimz
The Strictly insider said: “Telly’s now reached something of a
tipping point where you’re going to see an influencer on virtually every show where they have a variety of celebrities competing.
“George is a prefect example of how we don’t just randomly select someone with the most followers. We choose someone who will go on a journey with viewers and who can be ‘adopted’ by show devotees as well.
“And that’s very much what he has done, proving that influencers are now a vital part of the celebrity bubble. In a way they’re, the next step in the evolution of fame — in the same way that reality TV stars were, say, 20 years ago. Back then, a lot of people were asking, ‘Who is this person and where did they come from?’.
“But over time, viewers came to know them and like them and adopt them, and then they went from just being a niche proposition into proper household names. Look at the likes of Alison Hammond or Rylan Clark and Stacey Solomon, who started out on Big Brother and X Factor.
“Influencers are just reality TV stars 2.0.”
The insider insisted executives do not just “shoehorn anyone in to any role”, adding: “They’ll carefully cherry-pick the right person for the right show, whether that’s Celebrity Apprentice or Celebrity MasterChef. But, thankfully, there are plenty of influencers to go around.”
TV bosses do not just scout influencers to follow the current trend. They do it because it boosts ratings and targets a specific demographic.
It certainly seems to be working, too. After KSI — real name Olajide Olatunji — joined the Britain’s Got Talent judging panel on a temporary basis last year, ITV saw a 30 per cent surge in the number of times online clips were watched.
Telly’s now reached something of a tipping point where you’re going to see an influencer on virtually every show where they have a variety of celebrities competing.
Views and popularity alone are not the ultimate goal, though.
Money, as is so often the case, is also a huge motivation.
Clips from BGT’s British shows have been viewed globally over 24billion times and, on each occasion, there are adverts displayed which boost show creators’ coffers.
So any surge in online views naturally leads to a rise in profit, all without having to create new content.
Shows just need the pulling power of people like KSI
, whose followers will like and share clips, particularly if they feature their hero taking part in some of the acts on stage.
Meanwhile, appearing on shows such as BGT, Strictly and I’m A Celeb raises influencers’ profiles, and potentially wins over slightly older fans who may not previously have paid them much attention.
More followers means more lucrative deals and side projects.
‘Unlimited opportunities’
KSI is undoubtedly the greatest example of how much money can be made as he has accrued an unbelievable £26million through endorsements, sponsorship and promoting his own products.
It will take a while for viewers to get their head around this shift from only traditionally famous faces being picked for top shows.
But the change is already happening, with more and more influences plucked from their social media channels and given the exposure to make them big stars.
And seeing people such as Niko Omilana on The Celebrity Traitors will certainly help remind viewers of how trends are changing.
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BGT saw a 30% surge in the number of times online clips were watched after KSI joined the judging panel on a temporary basis Credit: Getty Advertisement
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KSI is undoubtedly the greatest example of how much money can be made by a high follower countCredit: Getty
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Seeing people such as Niko Omilana on The Celebrity Traitors will certainly help remind viewers of how trends are changing Credit: PA
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Niko pranking Rishi SunakCredit: AP
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I’m A Celeb has attracted several social media stars in recent years, including Nella RoseCredit: Rex
Many fans were surprised when fellow contestant Sir Stephen Fry revealed he was aware of the online prankster, having viewed his videos online. But Niko was certainly no stranger to a lot of the younger generation.
And his profile can only be boosted further by featuring on a show that enjoyed a peak rating of 14million views live and online.
An insider on The Celebrity Traitors said: “A lot of your older viewers would just have seen Sir Stephen and Jonathan Ross as real A-listers, but for lots of younger people, it was Niko who was a real A-list signing. It will take a lot of people some time to recalibrate their minds to the change.
“But the change has already taken place and, at one point, it will seem strange not to have influencers on these shows. The line between someone who’s a celebrity and who is an influencer has already blurred.
“At one point, someone who was not massively famous might have started to accrue a huge following and evolved into an influencer. What’s great about that is there is a real democratic element to fame these days. Almost anyone can have a TikTok or Instagram account.
“There’s no gatekeepers controlling you — it’s all down to your talent and chutzpah, essentially.
“If you’re good, then you’ll get followers, and if you get followers, you get attention for whatever USP you might have.
“It’s less to do with knowing the right people, or being in the right place at the right time, like it always used to be in the celebrity world.