Ellie Simmonds has shared some behind the scenes snaps at Strictly Come Dancing as she gears up to appear on the show next month.
The gold-winning Paralympic swimmer already looked right at home as she beamed posing for a snap outside her dressing room door.
Taking to Instagram, she told her 54,000 followers: “Eeeeeeek... it’s all getting real! The nerves and excitement have gone up a notch!”
Showing she was getting into the spirit of Strictly already, the 27-year-old added: “I couldn’t resist getting a photo with my dressing room door!
“And I seem to be feeling the Strictly vibe already with that pointed toe!”
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In her Instagram stories Ellie shared more snaps, including one with fellow contestant and wildlife photographer Hamza Yassin doing “jazz hands”.
Another photo shows the former swimming star sitting in the Strictly ‘glam room’, which is where all the stars get ready before the show and is full to the brim with all manner of sparkly things.
Testing a new look out for her upcoming performances, Ellie wrote: “Trying a fringe!!” followed by a laughing face emoji.
Ellie is one of 15 celebrities hoping to take home that famous Strictly glitterball this year.
She is also the first person with dwarfism to ever appear on the BBC show – something she says is a “real honour”.
Speaking exclusively with The Mirror, Ellie said: “I’ll be so, so nervous, and I will try not to think of all the people watching.
“I am the first dwarf doing the show, I will show how positive that is, that to be different is OK.”
Ellie’s appearance comes after deaf EastEnders star Rose Ayling-Ellis won the show with Giovanni Pernice last year.
The five-time Paralympic champion and broadcaster was the youngest British athlete at the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing at the age of 13.
She also became the youngest person to receive an MBE when she was 14, which was elevated to OBE in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to Paralympic sport.
But it’s her upcoming appearance on Strictly that has got her "bursting with excitement".
She said: "To be asked to be part of the Strictly family is just so exciting and I cannot wait. It's going to be so much fun.
"I'm counting down the minutes until it starts; learning to dance, meeting my partner and everyone else involved in the show. Plus wearing the sequins and all that, it's going to be a blast.
"I've been watching Strictly from as far back as I can remember; it's a traditional lead up to Christmas with my family and it's a genuine privilege to be part of it."
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