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Privacy Notice Quick-witted Anton Du Beke is a much-loved judge on Strictly Come Dancing, a role he took up in 2021, having performed since 2004 on the other side of the panel as professional dancer. And speaking of his tenure on the hit BBC show, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, Anton admits there’s one thing he found the most ‘uncomfortable’ to deal with when he first joined – “sexing” up his performances. Speaking exclusively to OK!,Anton admitted that, despite having had his fair share of inexperienced yet entertaining famous partners – former MP Ann Widdecombe being one example – dance novices haven’t been the hardest thing he’s had to navigate. “They started introducing new [dance] styles and we all got very suspicious,” he says.
Anton loves his reincarnation as a judge on Strictly
“We were all like, ‘What is this new stuff you wish us to do?’ It got all jazzy and we were OK with a bit of jazz and then it started to get a bit commercial and we all got a bit crumply. We started doing stuff like [sexy moves and rubbing each other up and down]. We looked idiotic, if I am being honest. They wanted us to learn this in like five minutes. I found it really uncomfortable doing the commercial stuff early doors – later on, I became brilliant at it!” Anton spent a whopping 6 years as a professional dancer on the show before joining Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood on the judging panel three years ago, and has entertained us with some fabulous telly gold since. But it’s not all been easy – and recently, Anton, Motsi and Craig showed their support for former show professional Giovanni Pernice – after the findings of the investigation into Amanda Abbington’s complaints against him were released.
The pair have their own show and went on tour together
Amanda had accused Giovanni of misconduct during the 2023 series, both physically and verbally. Following the investigation, the BBC confirmed there were no findings relating to physical aggression, but complaints of verbal bullying and harassment were upheld, with an apology issued to Amanda. And taking to Instagram after the result, following which, Giovanni issued a lengthy statement, sharing his joy that it was all ‘over’. And despite his controversial exit from the BBC show, it seems he still has a strong bond with many of the judges, as Motsi, Craig and Anton all showed support by ‘liking’ the post. Anton opened up last month about Giovanni’s return, saying: “I’d like to see him back of course.” The Ballroom King’ and Giovanni have previously collaborated on a BBC travel series and are set to hit the road again this year for a joint tour.Story SavedYou can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnStrictly Come DancingAnton Du BekeGiovanni PerniceCraig Revel HorwoodMotsi MabuseShirley Ballas
