Fan favourite Craig Revel Horwood has been a judge on Strictly Come Dancing since its inception. He sits down for a chat with Hannah Britt about haters, home renovations… and the shock celebrity he would pick to be his dance partner
This year saw Craig Revel Horwood celebrate a very special birthday – the big 6-0. And, while rumours have been swirling around whether or not the Strictly Come Dancing judge will retire this year, I am pleased to report that it’s not on the cards just yet. To thank, we have his house renovation. “When I was 25 I took out my pension and began paying in £136 a month. I’ve been paying that ever since. I once said I’d like to retire at 50 and to be able to afford a bottle of Champagne every day… but that didn’t work out. Then I thought, well maybe I’ll retire at 60… but now I’ve just bought a new house and gutted it – and everything is so expensive. So I don’t think retirement is on the cards for me just yet.”
Craig was recently unveiled as an ambassador for Sofology – as their Head of Fusstomer Experiences, no less. “I’m one of the fussiest people you’ll ever meet – as you’re probably well aware from watching me on Saturday nights – I’m not afraid to say if I don’t like something,” he laughs. But turning 60 hasn’t phased him. “I always forget until someone reminds me – like Anton du Beke likes to do live on telly,” says Craig, who lives in Kingscliff.
“I’m feeling great at 60. I remember when I was 30 and thought 60 year olds were ancient, but I don’t feel ancient. I also remember people saying you’re only as old as you feel and actually it is true. I’m still performing, and choreographing 18,19, 20 year olds. It keeps me relevant and in a young mindset because I’m conversing with them, working with them, having a laugh with them. Part of the team, the group, the clan. It keeps me up to date too with how young people speak – I know all the lingo.”
There’s no longer a sell by date on dancing, he says. “It used to be that at 30 as a dancer your career was over – like a footballer. After all, you can only keep doing the splits for a certain amount of time. But nowadays that 30 has become 50,” says Craig.
“Dancing used to be very ageist back in the 70s. You had to be a certain height, a certain shape – once you got old you were ousted and you had to go and teach. At the places I used to work, like Théâtre du Lido in Paris, we were measured and weighed while wearing nothing but a G-string. We all had to be 6ft 2 and all the same weight. It was so body conscious and that can ruin your mind. I was lucky to get out of there, I made a narrow escape I think from all of that.
“But nowadays at dance schools they’re teaching about nutrition and fitness, as well as about injury recovery. That never used to happen – if you were injured you were just put on the bench or sacked. Dancing has become more of a profession rather than running off to the circus. You can dance all your life.”
Craig has been on the judging panel for Strictly for over 20 years, since the show’s debut in 2004. He is the longest-running judge on the panel. “Strictly celebrates an older dancer and I think that’s great. In fact, it celebrates everyone, and I think that’s so important. So many press want to bring it down and I don’t understand why. It’s upsetting.”
Clickbait, I offer. “I don’t know what the obsession is with people clicking on absolutely every little thing. None of this was happening in the 70s and 80s – it didn’t exist when I was growing up and now it’s become a huge pressure,” says Craig, who grew up in Australia before moving to the UK aged 23.
“Social media too – obviously there’s a massive debate about whether it’s ruining children’s lives. Everyone has access to absolutely everything now – there is simply too much information. And now with AI coming into the foreground, everyone is using that instead of using their brains. I used to go to the encyclopaedia to look something up. What’s a volcano? I’d go and have a look. Now you ask a question and it’s answered mindlessly.”
Strictly, he says, brings people together. “We’ve seen Rose (Ayling-Ellis), who couldn’t hear the music, she could only feel it – and that led to everyone knowing how to say ‘thank you’ in sign language on the show. It becomes a matter of habit and I think that’s really important.
“Then you’ve got someone like Chris (McCausland) who was blind and had to jump off chairs, that really woke me up to how he has to live his life and the way he has to learn things. And now we have Ellie (Goldstein, the first Strictly contestant to have Down Syndrome). Why do we put people in boxes? I think it’s disgusting. Strictly is about community and I am all for that.”
This year, there is a drag queen as part of the line-up for the first time too: La Voix. “It says it’s okay to put on your mother’s heels and have a laugh. There’s movement and colour for children. It opens up conversations, starts dialogues. It’s so important to bring every part of the community together and celebrate them,” says Craig.
“I think we need to calm down in life. It has become a very woke world and I think Strictly has evolved out of any stereotypes. We’ve had boys dancing with boys, girls dancing together, and it’s great.
“What other show brings people together in the same way? So many people have a common thread if they watch Strictly, no matter what you do for work or what your interests are. We have footballers, rugby players, we have snooker champions, Olympic champions. It’s a conversation starter, it creates friendships.
“It’s become such an institution. For a lot of people it’s something they look forward to. We try to raise everyone’s spirits. That’s what it’s all about. Strictly isn’t going anywhere!”
One day we may even see him compete. “If I was a pro dancer… I’d like to be paired with Simon Cowell,” laughs Craig. “He’s smaller than me, so he’d have to go backwards. Wouldn’t we make a great team?”
*Craig is working with Sofology who pride themselves on being there for fussy ones
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
