BBC's Strictly Come Dancing 2025 season has kicked off with all 15 celebrity contestants performing their first live routines, but one name already stands out as the most likely first elimination. Ross King, the longtime LA showbiz correspondent for ITV's Lorraine and Good Morning Britain, finds himself at the bottom of both judges' scores and bookmakers' predictions after his initial Cha Cha performance scored just 10 points overall. Judge Craig Revel Horwood described the routine as "very awkward," setting a challenging tone for the Scottish presenter's ballroom journey.

The entertainment reporter's struggles were compounded by betting odds that placed him as the clear favorite for early departure. Bookmakers Coral gave King 2-1 odds to be the first contestant eliminated once voting begins, while BOYLE sports had previously positioned him at 80/1 to win the Glitterball Trophy—the longest odds among all competitors. These predictions came even before his live performance, suggesting early training sessions had already signaled difficulties for the television veteran.

King himself appears to share the pessimistic outlook, having admitted to struggling from the first day of rehearsals and telling his girlfriend Bridget to attend the initial live show because he doesn't anticipate many more appearances. The physical demands of Strictly training have proven challenging for the presenter, who acknowledged the ballroom represents a different beast compared to his usual red-carpet reporting duties and dawn starts in Hollywood.

While King faces elimination pressure, the competition's frontrunners are emerging clearly. Actor Lewis Cope leads as the warm favorite to win at 7/4 odds, with Ellie Goldstein following closely at 7/2. The dynamics shifted recently with Amber Davies's last-minute inclusion after Dani Dyer's injury withdrawal, with the Love Island champion and experienced performer immediately storming into joint fourth position and potentially disrupting the established hierarchy as the season progresses.

King Charles has joined forces with Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett in a previously unpublicized podcast recording focused on global conservation efforts. The 22-minute episode, titled "Unearthed: The Need For Seeds," was recorded in the private gardens of Windsor Castle in July and features the monarch alongside Blanchett and Kew seed scientist Dr. Elinor Breman. This marks only the second podcast recording in the King's public life, demonstrating his continued commitment to environmental causes that have defined much of his royal work.

The conversation centered on the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst, West Sussex, which King Charles originally opened in 2000 and has maintained an active interest in since. The facility represents one of the world's most ambitious conservation projects, having collected, cleaned, dried and stored nearly 2.5 billion seeds from more than 40,000 plant species in walk-in freezers maintained at minus 20 degrees Celsius. Both the King and Blanchett, who became Wakehurst's first ambassador last year, emphasized the critical importance of this work in preserving global biodiversity.

During the discussion, Blanchett expressed concern about the rapid loss of natural habitats, noting that "97 percent of wildflower meadows have been decimated" in recent decades. She highlighted the disconnect between perceived natural beauty and actual ecological fragility, stating that "there is an urgency to the work that the seed bank does." The King echoed this sentiment, reflecting on his long-standing awareness of environmental degradation, particularly the damage to flower-rich meadows since the postwar period.

The podcast also touched on broader conservation challenges, including the need for increased funding and public awareness. Blanchett pointed to the frustration of seeing "so many extraordinary initiatives right there ready to be scaled up" but lacking financial support and direction. King Charles acknowledged both the progress made and the need to accelerate conservation efforts, stating that while the seed bank's work is "wonderful," the process must speed up to address escalating environmental threats facing plant species worldwide.