Horwood has been a member of the judging panel on the BBC's "Strictly Come Dancing" since its inception in 2004. He has a reputation for being the harshest of the "Strictly Come Dancing" judges and is often the recipient of booing from the studio audience. He received criticism for his apparent bias towards Emma Bunton in the fourth series of the competition. He is known for stringently applying rules, as for example when marking down for an "illegal lift" in some dances if the lady's foot leaves the floor.