Strictly Come Dancing host Claudia Winkleman has revealed she and Tess Daly made a pact to leave the BBC show at the same time – and it was all over a pizza
Claudia Winkleman has disclosed how she and Tess Daly cooked up a Thelma and Louise-esque scheme over pizza to bow out of Strictly Come Dancing together whilst at their peak.
Viewers were left gobsmacked this week when the show’s beloved presenting duo revealed they’d be taking their final bow from the dance floor after an incredible 21-year stint, once this series wraps up.
However, Claudia has now admitted that the pair hatched their exit strategy years earlier. Chuckling, she dismissed suggestions that audiences wanted her to remain indefinitely, quipping: “I don’t think anybody would want that.
“I am sure people watching would go ‘Can that small orange creature just shuffle off?’ Tess and I will leave at the same time. We made that pact over pizza. I had pepperoni.”
The duo stepped into the shoes of the late television icon Sir Bruce Forsyth, who departed the programme in 2014 following a decade as presenter. With the phenomenally successful The Traitors also in her portfolio, Claudia insists her chemistry with Tess is flawless, reports the Mirror.
“I get terrified doing live TV,” she confessed. “If Tess is ever wearing anything long sleeved or an upper arm garment, it is because I have squeezed her, because I get really really scared. It is because I have got imposter syndrome.”
Despite her celebrity status, Claudia, 53, insists she remains unrecognised whilst travelling on London Underground.
She revealed: “I don’t feel famous at all. I am on the Tube four times a day. The Central line is one of the loves of my life and I have never once been recognised. I can get on the Tube in full sequins and hum the theme tune and nobody looks up, nobody. Not one.”
The presenter attributes her achievements to her parents – former newspaper editor Eve Pollard and her father Barry – who supported her entertainment industry aspirations following her History of Art degree at Cambridge University.
Her television journey kicked off in 1992 with the enduring BBC travel programme Holiday. Claudia explained: “The confidence I have comes from my parents. When I was tiny, to them the BBC was everything and it was the place they would always go to rely on.
“I remember the first time I was employed by the BBC. I phoned my dad and I was crying and he was crying. I said ‘I have got a job at the BBC’. He was like ‘It has all been worthwhile.’ I said ‘I am doing a three part documentary series on BBC Three’. He said ‘Stop. What is it called?’ I said ‘It is called Toilets.'”
After years of working on programmes such as Talking Telephone Numbers, This Morning, Liquid News and Fame Academy, Claudia’s big opportunity arrived in 2004 when she was chosen to host Strictly’s companion show It Takes Two. After a six-year stint on the BBC2 spin-off, Claudia moved up to the main event – co-hosting the weekly Sunday night show with Tess, an experience she has thoroughly enjoyed.
“It is a show predominantly run by women and they are brilliant women,” she said.
Evolving into somewhat of a fashion icon, she reveals that each outfit she wears is inspired by a theme. “It could be a person, it could be a place. One year I was Andre Agassi when I had long bits in my hair and we put turf in my dressing room,” she shared.
“I have done Pam StClement, Slash from Guns n Roses, I had a Joan Rivers moment, Sharon Osbourne, Anita Dobson, Rob Kardashian, Elton John, Mr Darcey from Pride and Prejudice. My favourite though was when we dressed the whole series as Sexy Fish, based on the restaurant in London. I have to say it did not look good on me!”
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