Oti Mabuse, 32, has discussed the pressures facing women to be a certain size on TV.
The Dancing On Ice judge shared that her “curvy” body type was accepted while on Strictly Come Dancing, but since leaving the show she has experienced different attitudes.
The TV star told The Times: “I’m never going to be size zero. I think I was relatable for a lot of women because all the girls [on Strictly] are really petite.
“Only when I didn’t dance anymore and you could see me sit and you’d be like, ‘Oh she’s got boobs. Oh she’s curvy.’”
The dancer explained that the pressure to have a certain body type comes from the over-saturation of smaller silhouettes on screen, saying it “doesn’t come from people saying anything, it’s from what you see”.
She continued: “If that’s what brands are pushing, if that’s the people who get the big shows, if that’s what they look like, you think it’s the standard. It plays in your subconscious.”
Mabuse then went on to discuss how her body has changed since appearing on the BBC ballroom, explaining that she’s now a woman in her 30s, compared to being in her 20s on the show, and insisted that she doesn’t let the pressure to look a certain way affect her.
The TV star left Strictly Come Dancing as a professional dancer in 2022 and swapped the ballroom for the ice rink to become a judge on Dancing On Ice.
Meanwhile her sister Motsi, 42, is currently a judge on Strictly after replacing Dame Darcey Bussell in 2019.
Elsewhere, the DOI star launches her own show, Oti Mabuse’s Breakfast Show, this Saturday on ITV.
The show is a mix of celebrity guest chats, dinner inspiration, and feel-good weekend energy.
