Former Scotland rugby pro and full-time heart-throb Thom Evans has been announced as the first male celebrity contestant for this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.

The 29 year-old hunk, who has worked as a model since retiring from rugby, confirmed his involvement in the show through a Vine video in which he catches the show’s disco ball and says “catch me on Strictly!”

Evans, who was forced to quit rugby after suffering a serious neck injury in 2010, said of his decision to join the show, “I’m so happy to be doing the show, I cannot wait to get started. I’m really looking forward to my Strictly makeover – bring on Strictly and bring on the spandex”.

While his sculpted body is known for his appearances on magazine covers such as Mens Health and Attitude, his face will be known to the general public for his romance with TV personality and model Kelly Brook, who he dated for two years.

The couple experienced heartbreak when they suffered a miscarriage five months into Brook’s pregnancy. The pair later split in 2011, with Brook going on to date her next hunk – ex-Gladiator, personal trainer and current Celebrity Big Brother contestant David Macintosh.

The new series of the BBC1 show, which airs in the autumn, will be the first not to include veteran presenter Bruce Forsyth, with Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly sharing presenting duties. Last year, Ben Cohen, another gay icon rugby player appeared on Strictly, bringing the show to a new audience.

To celebrate talented Thom’s announcement, here is a video of his work with D.HEDRAL underwear where Evan’s stars as a Beach God.

And now for some still imagery from the impeccably-shot campaign…