Angela Scanlon has opened up about the dance that will be “grossly uncomfortable” to perform on Strictly Come Dancing.
The Irish TV presenter is among the 15 celebrities preparing to take to the dance floor this autumn, as Strictly returns for its 21st series.
Speaking ahead of the series launch show on Saturday (16 September), Scanlon said she has found the period between her participation in the show being announced and learning who her pro partner is “excruciating”.
Scanlon then opened up about the dance she was most excited to learn, no matter how awkward she might find it.
“In the vein of leaning into things that are uncomfortable, I feel like the rumba will be grossly uncomfortable for me and everybody watching... going right to the edge of discomfort, so I’m here to learn,” she told the Press Association.
A Latin dance, the rumba is one of the most notoriously difficult dances on Strictly, due to its slow and sensual nature.
Scanlon is best known to viewers for hosting Your Home Made Perfect on BBC Two and her own Saturday night show, Ask Me Anything, on RTÉ in Ireland.
Scanlon will compete on ‘Strictly’ 2023— (BBC / Remarkable TV)
Last month, following her announcement on Strictly 2023, the 39-year-old opened up about a time a BBC producer allegedly made derogatory remarks about her.
The comments were reportedly made when Scanlon was hosting the rebooted version of Robot Wars from 2016 to 2018 alongside Dara Ó Briain.
According to the presenter, Scanlon was told she was there to bring “glamour” to the show, and referred to as the “tits and teeth” of Robot Wars.
“It felt so reductive and so presumptuous that I would have arrived with my lippie on and my legs out to entertain the lads, and that was my value,” she said. “Absolutely not.”
While Scanlon’s Strictly partner will soon be revealed, one dancer reportedly “fuming” not to be competing this year is Nadiya Bychkova.
The Ukrainian dancer joined the show in 2017 and has competed with a celebrity partner every year since. However, according to reports, Bychkova is not in a couple for this year’s competition.
A source told The Mirror: “Nadiya lives and breathes Strictly, and so to hear that she wouldn’t have a celebrity partner this year was crushing for her. She was both gutted, and very, very angry.”
The Independent has contacted the BBC for comment.
Strictly Come Dancing returns Saturday 16 September at 6.35pm on BBC One.
Additional reporting by Press Association
