Interview: Jamie Laing Chats STRICTLY COME DANCING

Jamie Laing is a TV personality and entrepreneur who started his career in 2011 in the second series of BAFTA-winning television series Made in Chelsea. Since then, he has starred on Murder in Successville, In Bed With Jamie, Celebrity Hunted, Celebrity Great British Bake Off and Famous and Fighting Crime. He's also hosted the Private Parts podcast.

Jamie is currently competing in Strictly Come Dancing. Ahead of musical week on Saturday, we talked to Jamie about his time on the show and what he is looking forward to.

How are the rehearsals going?

We're dancing the jive so I'm exhausted. It's a tough routine! But it's an amazing dance and it's so much fun. And, hopefully, this weekend it's going to turn out really good.

This week is musical week, what can you tell me about it?

It's going to be a great one! We're dancing to a number from Everybody's Talking About Jamie and it's amazing. It's a great song.

One of the greatest things too is that I got to meet Jamie Campbell, on whom the show is based. I got to chat with him this morning, so that was incredible. He's such a cool guy and the show has such an amazing message to give as well.

It's all about being confident in who you are and not tolerating people stopping you from being who you want to be. It's a really good message.

Are you excited for your performance on Saturday?

I'm over the moon excited about Saturday! It's been such a tough time this year in the theatre industry. It's amazing that we are able to bring the musical world to the Strictly audience's attention.

People have missed musicals and theatres and it's a wonderful feeling to get to bring them back for them! So, we're just going to make sure everyone loves it this Saturday.

How has it been doing the show with everything going on?

Oh, it's very different because you can't touch anyone or be near anyone else. But you get the opportunity to entertain the whole nation so it's wonderful. I feel incredibly blessed to be doing all of this. It's such an amazing show. I love that everyone seems to be enjoying it.

What made you want to compete in Strictly Come Dancing?

I was supposed to do it last year but that didn't work out so I really wanted to do it again. Also, in my opinion, it's one of the best TV shows in the UK. Not only do you get to learn with one of the greatest dancers in the world, but you also get to entertain millions of people while having the best time.

I think it's such a great opportunity and such a fun thing to do. I could never not do it. I love Karen [Hauer] and getting to dance with her every week is amazing.

Did you ever do any other kind of dancing before Strictly?

I have never danced in my entire life. This is the first time I'm ever dancing. I think more people should do it. It's a really amazing thing. Dancing is a great way to get fit, to get endorphins, and you even get to learn a new talent. It's just really fun and I absolutely adore it.

Did you find it hard to pick up?

I got into it really easily. I think that's because I enjoyed it from the beginning. I feel very lucky that I got to do it. So many people want to do the show and the fact that I got asked to do it is a real privilege.

Do you think you'll continue dancing after the show?

Yeah, definitely. I used to go to the gym but who needs the gym now when you can dance? I'm just going to dance now. It's amazing. It's such good cardio. It's incredible.

What have you learned from this experience?

The thing that I've learned most is that you can do and push yourself beyond anything you thought you could. When I first started, on week 1, I had to learn the cha-cha and I never thought I would get these steps until I realized I could do it.

It's all about persistence and hard work but if you have those things down, you can do anything with hard work, persistency and a good mindset. That's the most important things!

What are you looking forward to for Saturday?

I'm just looking forward to dancing with my partner. I feel so lucky that I've found a real buddy in Karen and I get to dance with her, hang out with her and do what we've been doing all week and show it to everybody. We get to dance to this incredible musical that everyone loves, sharing the story and make everybody proud! That's what we want to do.

Thank you to every single person who constantly votes for us, it means the world!

Catch Jamie Laing in Musicals Week on Strictly Come Dancing on BBC One on 5 December

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