Strictly's Brendan used Dirty Dancing to woo girls

Strictly Come Dancing's Brendan Cole has confessed he used to woo women by taking them to see Dirty Dancing before revealing he's a professional dancer. The Strictly star and self-confessed "bad boy of ballroom" - who was voted off the show at the weekend with partner Jo Wood - told the Radio Times the chick flick starring the late Patrick Swayze was his ultimate pulling technique. Asked what film he would take a girl to see on a date Brendan admitted: "This is an easy one - Dirty Dancing - I remember taking a few girls to see it over the years, and then, of course, after watching this very sexy, very romantic movie, there's the killer line, 'Oh, did I mention that I was a dancer?'" The 33-year-old dancer, who is engaged to British model Zoe Hobbs, also confessed he likes watching Strictly rival show The X Factor. Brendan said: "It's probably in my contract that I have to say I hate The X Factor, but I've never been one of those guys who follows all the rules. I love 'em both. Strictly is much better, of course, because I'm on it!"

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Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix.

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.