in

Strictly star addresses ‘diva’ claims as he lifts lid on wild backstage antics

Strictly Come Dancing professional Neil Jones has revealed what it is really like to perform on the BBC show as he exposes backstage antics.

Loyal fans of the beloved ballroom competition will remember when the fiery redhead joined the star-studded cast back in 2016. Since then, he has gone on to choreograph several stellar routines across the series as well as teach several celebrities for the Christmas Day special, most recently including Rosie Ramsey.

But viewers rarely get to see what the stars get up to backstage while the other contestants are performing for the audience. Now, in an exclusive interview with Daily Star, the doting dad has given fans a glimpse behind the curtain on life as a dancer on the long-running ballroom show.

READ MORE: Want more showbiz? Daily Star has just the thing for you!

READ MORE: Want more TV? Daily Star has just the thing for you!

Speaking to us at a dog friendly event at Romeo and Juliet’s café, the TV hunk revealed which dancers take the longest time in the makeup chair. He confessed: “Nikita and Carlos, they normally, they like to take their time with everything which I think is hilarious.

Strictly Neil Jones shuts down ‘diva’ claims as he lifts lid on backstage antics
(Image: PA)

“They’re not diva’s but they’ve just got this personality and for me I love all the different personalities.” He went on to shower the show with praise for their groundbreaking steps forward in raising awareness for different communities.

This included same sex partnerships as John Whaite and Johannes Rabede displayed in addition to using their platform to raise awareness for a range of disabilities as Rose Ayling-Ellis proved when she won the show back in 2021. He went on: “Strictly is so good at raising awareness and I think it’s important that we celebrate that.

“I think there’s a little boy or a little girl out there and maybe they’ve got ginger hair or their gay and they think that they can’t do anything. And then they see someone on TV that is just like them and it gives them home, and I think that’s so important with these shows because we need that.”

He claimed Nikita Kuzmin and Carlos Gu spend the most time in the makeup chair
(Image: BBC)

It comes after Neil and his partner Chyna Mills welcomed their first child together last week, as they introduced their loyal legion of fans to their newborn daughter. The happy couple, who confirmed they were expecting a baby months after they shared their engagement, shared an adorable black and white snap of their baby’s feet online.

They simply captioned the post: “Our hearts are so full” as their famous friends and loyal legion of fans showered them with congratulatory comments online. Neil confirmed the exciting news on his Instagram Stories sharing the same picture which he captioned: “She’s everything.”

The couple received a host of well wishes, with Strictly judge Motsi Mabuse leading the charge, writing: “Congratulations guys” with Tess Daly echoing: “Huge Congratulations [heart-eyes emoji] Love to you all! [three heart emojis].

The pro dancer welcomed his first child with Chyna Mills last week
(Image: Instagram)

Have you joined Threads? Follow Daily Star to keep up to date on all things showbiz here.

While fellow pros Jowita Przystał and Karen Hauer passed on their congratulations. Some of Chyna’s fellow Love Island castmates also reached out with their congratulatory comments, with Dami Hope adding: “Omgggg she’s here congrats [three crying emojis, heart emoji, fire emoji]”.

Luca Bish added: “Congratulations guys! Can’t wait to meet her [white heart emoji]” as Gemma Owen and Tasha Ghouri added: “Congratulations!”

Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturday and Sunday from 6.30pm or watch it on catch-up on BBCiPlayer.

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk


Tagcloud:

Maura Higgins goes nearly topless for KSI vs Tommy Fury fight with stunning outfit

Twins Peaks and Carrie star Piper Laurie dies after long illness as fans pay tribute