Judge Rinder will perform a foxtrot in front of his 89-year-old grandparents Harry and Frances on the Strictly dance floor tonight.
Strictly Come Dancing star Judge Rinder will perform a foxtrot tonight in front of his 89-year-old grandparents.
The TV judge will whirl round the dance floor with professional partner Oksana Platero to You Make Me Feel So Young by Frank Sinatra under the watchful eye of Frances and Harry Rinder, from Whetstone, who have a particular affection for the foxtrot and would regularly visit the Empire Rooms in Leicester Square in the 1950s to dance.
Rinder said: “My grandmother is sadly mostly housebound these days so it’s not so easy for her, but my papa can still get up and lead the dance much better than I can!
“This is the dance of my grandparents’ generation – my grandma more than anybody taught me to love dancing and to have a real interest, respect and admiration for the past.
“I am profoundly conscious how lucky I am to have two grandparents with me who are incredibly proud of me and everything I have ever done.
“So to dance this (a dance that has meant so much to them in their life) means more to me than I can possibly say.
“I know that my grandparents have so much goodwill [towards me] that I’m not too nervous about performing this dance in front of them.”
Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls will perform a salsa to Gangnam Style with his partner Katya Jones while Olympic gymnast Claudia Fragapane and AJ Pritchard will be dancing the Viennese waltz to Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson. Long jump champion Greg Rutherford and partner Natalie Lowe will attempt the paso doble to Tamacun by Rodrigo y Gabriela.
Model Daisy Lowe and Aljaz Skorjanec will be dancing the salsa to Groove Is In The Heart by Deee-Lite while Hollyoaks star Danny Mac and Oti Mabuse will tackle the Argentine tango to I Heard it Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye.
Singer Louise Redknapp and Kevin Clifton will be dancing the American Smooth to Big Spender by Shirley Bassey and BBC Sports presenter Ore Oduba and Joanne Clifton will be dancing the rumba to Ordinary People by John Legend.
Strictly Come Dancing in on at 6.55pm on BBC One.
