I’ve been in the bottom of the pits and I’ve rubbed shoulders with the King and the Queen,” Johannes Radebe tells me. “I’m a boy from Zamdela who never thought life could possibly turn out this way.” He lets out a hearty laugh, shifting back – as he tends to do – into dazzle mode. “It did give me resilience, my darling.”
Tonight, Radebe will make his debut as one of three new presenters guiding viewers through the revamped Strictly Come Dancing, alongside Emma Willis and Josh Widdecombe. And he’s the only one with connecting tissue to the show’s earlier Tess-and-Claudia incarnation, having served as a professional dancer on Strictly since 2018. He admits he’s nervous, but he’s also made of strong stuff. Growing up in South Africa during the final years of apartheid, the 39-year-old withstood homophobia and a period of homelessness while pursuing a dance career in Johannesburg. Reading an autocue seems a cakewalk in comparison. Still…
