Lisa was paired with Robin Windsor, but that wasn’t always meant to be the case…
Lisa Riley has dropped a bombshell, revealing Strictly Come Dancing bosses switched her professional partner during her stint on the 2012 series.
The TV star let slip that she wasn’t originally meant to dance with pro Robin Windsor as Strictly bosses had initially paired her up with Artem Chigvinstev.
But it soon became clear that the chemistry between Lisa and Robin was too good to waste so producers made a last minute switch so they would be paired up – meaning Artem was left to partner Fern Britton.
‘You know the original plan - I don't know if people know this... me and Robin were never ever supposed to be paired up. In the original break down I was with Artem. And Fern Britton, she was with Robin,’ Lisa revealed to Hello!
Explaining why the changed occurred, she continued: ‘What happened was - when you go into hiding, for those three days, the preparation three days, they just saw us like this (she clicks); the camaraderie. We were like two little four year olds playing around. They were like, 'that has to happen'. Then Fern got Artem and I got Robin. It was Strictly magic!’
But it proved to be one of the best decisions BBC bosses could have made for Lisa, as she admits she and Robin are still extremely close.
‘With love. So happy,’ she gushed when asked how she looks back at her time on the show, adding, ‘And Robin is still my best friend for life and I'm so lucky that they brought us together.’
Lisa and Robin made it all the way to the semi-finals, with the couple often lauded as the stars of the 2012 series.
