Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke has revealed he was stabbed by his father when he was a child.
The 57-year-old ballroom dancer said his father Antal stabbed him in the leg and stomach during a disagreement on Boxing Day at their home in Kent.
During an appearance on Kate Garraway’s Life Stories, Du Beke revealed he was hospitalised for “three or four days” after the brutal attack.
“I got stabbed in the leg and in the stomach because of a fight on Boxing Day and it was an idiotic situation,” said Du Beke, recalling the incident.
“I remember walking out of the house to walk up to the hospital holding my leg and a police car drove past and I waved them down and I said ‘he’s in there with a knife’.
“Anyway, they carted him off and I ended up in hospital for three or four days. My only concern was getting back into the studio and dancing and the embarrassment of it.”
The TV judge’s father was apparently battling issues with alcohol.
“The alcoholism and the violence... [it was] towards me, because I was a boy, a young man I suppose,” Du Beke said.
“You’ve got an alcoholic father and a situation where if you’re in the house, [he’s] drinking then you end up with the fights and stuff.
“You’d move room to get away from all of it and then he follows you in and the next thing you know the violence starts and then it came to a head one evening, I ended up in hospital for three days.”
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Du Beke said he never told any of his family members or loved ones about the attack as he never saw any gain in speaking about it.
“I’m a forward looker... I don’t like to look back, I like to look forward,” the Strictly judge said.
Whenever someone asked him about his leg injury, Du Beke told them he had “pulled a hamstring” because he was embarrassed.
“I can’t really believe I’m talking to you about this. I should’ve glossed over this,” Du Beke told Garraway. “Even the thought of that [the attack] being a thing sort of annoys me as well.”
Du Beke’s father was cleared in court for the attack and when he died, his son chose to skip his funeral.
“Everything was about moving forwards, I felt sorry for my mum, this was her husband, she’s working two jobs and he chose to drink and be violent, it’s just life and you carry on,” Du Beke said.
Du Beke was the longest-serving professional dancer on Strictly, having appeared on the show since the first series in 2004 but never winning.
In 2021, he joined the judging panel on the BBC competition, replacing departing judge Bruno Tonioli.
If you or someone you know is suffering from alcohol addiction, you can confidentially call the national alcohol helpline Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 or visit the NHS website here for information about the programmes available to you.
