John Whaite says he is expecting some flak for his next Strictly Come Dancing routine.
Chef John and pro partner Johannes Radebe will be dancing a romantic rumba to Shape of My Heart by Sting tonight.
Speaking ahead of Saturday’s episode, John says he hopes the dance will “make people gasp and go, wow”
Talking to the Mirror newspaper, John described the routine as “intimate”, saying: “What we’ve done so far have been very masculine, laddy kinds of dances. We’ve had bantery dances, pally dances, now it’s time to be romantic….
“The rumba is the most sensual dance, and we’re not going to shy away from that. We’re here to make the point that gay people and same sex couples should be allowed to dance together.”
John, who is in Strictly’s first ever same-sex male pairing, told the tabloid he was expecting “flak” for the dance but insisted the pair are “definitely not holding back”.
He explained: “I’m a bit nervous about how it’s going to be received because it’s a very intimate dance. Some people have already expressed their distaste for Johannes and me as a partnership, so I’m expecting to get a bit of flak over it.
“But you know what? We’re over that kind of nonsense. We’re over people trying to be hateful and hurtful, because we’ve had it all our lives. So the more I think about it, the less nervous get.”
John added that despite some trolls online, the reaction to his performances from viewers had been “99.9%” positive.
John and Johannes are one of the favourites to win the contest having topped the leardboard twice now. Will they make it a hat-trick this weekend?
Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday 6, November at 6:45PM with the results show on Sunday, 7 November at 7:15PM on BBC One.
Picture: Johannes Radebe, John Whaite – (C) BBC – Photographer: Guy Levy
