Xu specialises in
Latin dance and was a finalist in the U21 World Championships in 2010, she finished in third place in the 2010-2012 CBDF National Amateur Latin Championships and was runner-up at the 2013 International Singapore Championship. Xu appeared on the
Chinese version of
So You Think You Can Dance in 2014, where she reached the finals. In 2015, she joined the dance company
Burn the Floor and performed around the world. In 2025, Xu, alongside fellow Strictly professional
Katya Jones, starred in the short film
Dakota Stone.
Strictly Come Dancing On 30 July 2019, her 28th birthday, Xu was announced as a new professional dancer joining the
seventeenth series of
Strictly Come Dancing. Xu was however partnered with
EastEnders actor
Rudolph Walker for the
2019 Children in Need special where they danced a group Cha-Cha-Cha. Xu returned as a professional for the
eighteenth series however was not paired up with a celebrity for the second time and remained part of the dance troupe. Xu was given a partner for the first time in the
nineteenth series when she was paired up with
CBBC presenter
Rhys Stephenson. The couple were eliminated in the semi-final, coming 4th in the competition. The couple had topped the leader-board twice, once with the
Charleston and once with the
Argentine tango, but were also in the dance-off four times. For the
twentieth series she was partnered with actor
Will Mellor. The couple made it to the semi-final, topping the leaderboard three times in the process, but were eliminated and finished in 5th place. For the
twenty-first series she was partnered with comedian and actor
Les Dennis. They were the first couple to be eliminated, after losing the first dance-off of the series to
Nikita Kanda and
Gorka Márquez. For the
twenty-second series she was partnered with singer and actor
Shayne Ward. They were the seventh couple to be eliminated, after losing the dance-off to
Wynne Evans and
Katya Jones.
Highest and Lowest Scoring Per Dance Series 19: with celebrity partner Rhys Stephenson • number indicates that Rhys and Nancy were at the top of the leaderboard. • number indicates that Rhys and Nancy were at the bottom of the leaderboard. • *Score awarded by guest judge
Cynthia Erivo.
Series 20: with celebrity partner Will Mellor • number indicates that Will and Nancy were at the top of the leaderboard. • number indicates that Will and Nancy were at the bottom of the leaderboard.
Series 21: with celebrity partner Les Dennis • number indicates that Les and Nancy were at the bottom of the leaderboard.
Series 22: with celebrity partner Shayne Ward • number indicates that Shayne and Nancy were at the bottom of the leaderboard.
Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special Xu danced a
Quickstep with
Jamie Borthwick for the
2023 Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special, achieving the maximum 40 points from the judges and winning the competition. Xu danced with
Harry Aikines-Aryeetey for the
2024 Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. Xu danced with
Babatunde Aléshé for the
2025 Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. ==Filmography==