‘I do have a few moves': NI Game of Thrones star confirmed as final Strictly Come Dancing contestant
The Lisburn actor is well known to television viewers here, having played Hodor in the HBO fantasy series and is also known for his role as Wee John Feeney in the HBO comedy Our Flag Means Death.
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Daily Mirror
40 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Strictly Come Dancing star Chris Robshaw ready to quit BBC show over crazed stalker
Strictly Come Dancing star Chris Robshaw has told pals he would quit the show "without hesitation" if his stalking hell got worse and put wife Camilla and their kids at risk Rugby ace Chris Robshaw informed the police before his own family that he was considering signing up for Strictly Come Dancing after being targeted by a female stalker. The former England rugby star, 39, called in the cops after the woman threatened him with violence and spread false allegations about him and his opera singer wife Camilla Kerslake, 39. And a pal told the Mirror how he sought the permission of officers assigned to his case to get the green light to do the BBC show. The friend said: 'Before signing up, he had to tell his case officer that he was doing the show, going as far to ask for their blessing as such. The Police were told about Strictly, before he told his own family. He was one of the last celebrities to sign up, because he was taking the right measures to secure his family, before signing on the dotted line'. The stalking began six months after the woman met him briefly during two work events last year. She is understood to have left the country and is on the National Police Wanted List. Chris has said he would even be prepared to quit Strictly if things got worse. The source added: 'Chris has made it clear that his family always comes first. He told friends that if this situation ever put Camilla or the children at risk, he'd walk away from Strictly without hesitation. "He almost pulled out of the show altogether but changed his mind because he wants his son to see him out there, embracing something new and fun. He doesn't want fear to win.' Opening up about the ordeal, the pal told how his wife Camilla was too scared to leave the house at times because of the woman. The pal said: 'This woman is unhinged and nobody knows what her next move will be. Camilla has been left petrified about leaving the house with the children. "She's confided in friends that she has even run through scenarios in her head of how she would protect them if this individual were to approach - 'that's how real the fear has been utterly consuming — their lives have been hijacked by this ordeal.' Chris earned 66 caps for England, captaining them 43 times and leading the team to a Six Nations Grand Slam victory in 2016. A spokesperson for Chris told the Mirror: 'This is an ongoing police investigation, and therefore we are unable to comment at this time. Chris will not be commenting further.' Speaking about joining Strictly, Rob said previously: 'This is about as far out of my comfort zone as it gets! I'm hoping to take my dad dancing to a whole new level, and my mum can't wait to drag me along to her Zumba class. Let's see if a rugby sidestep works in the Cha Cha Cha.'
Daily Mirror
42 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Strictly celebrity pairings 'revealed' and one star who could be 'benched'
The full line-up for the 2025 series of Strictly Come Dancing has been announced, but fans believe they have worked out which professionals will be paired with which celebrities The complete lineup for the 2025 series of Strictly Come Dancing has been officially revealed and eagle-eyed viewers reckon they have sussed out one same-sex pairing as well as all of the other pairings. The programme is set to make its comeback this autumn, with Game of Thrones star Kristian Nairn amongst the confirmed celebrity contestants. The-49 year-old, who also works as a renowned DJ, stands at an impressive six foot nine inches tall. The BBC dancing show typically matches famous faces with professional dancers based on height compatibility. It comes after it was revealed that Vicky Pattison suffered a gruelling health issue just days into training. Now, one dedicated viewer posted online that they believe they have cracked it for this very reason, predicting that Kristian will be matched with a male professional. They wrote: "Given his height, maybe there's a chance he gets a male pro? Even the taller female pros will still be nearly a foot shorter than him. Excited to see him, always struck me as a lovely guy in interviews." Another fan responding to the theory suggested: "Maybe he'll get Johannes?". A third also agreed: "Wow, was not expecting this. Rooting for him and excited to see how they will work around the height difference." Elsewhere on the show this year will be Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, Dani Dyer, Alex Kingston, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Balvinder Sopal, George Clarke, La Voix, Chris Robshaw, Ellie Goldstein, Thomas Skinner, Stefan Dennis, Ross King, and Karen Carney. Ahead of the brand-new series, several fans of the BBC show have now predicted what professionals will be paired with what celebrities. On one Reddit thread which has already raked up hundreds of likes, one Strictly fan wrote: "I feel like these will all be paired together. "Alex Kingston and Aljaz Skorjanec, Balvinder Sopal and Neil Jones, Chris Robshaw and Nadiya Bychkova, Dani Dyer and Julian Caillon, Ellie Goldstein and Nikita Kuzmin, and George Clarke and Alexis Warr." The Reddit user went on: "Harry Aikines-Aryeetey and Lauren Oakley, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Dianne Buswell, Karen Carney and Vito Coppola, Kristian Nairn and Carlos Gu, La Voix and Kai Widdrington, Ross King and Jowita Przystal. "Stefan Dennis and Karen Hauer, Thomas Skinner and Luba Mushtuk, and Vicky Pattison and Johannes Radebe." The Strictly Come Dancing fan went on to add their predictions of what dancers might be 'benched' this year as they wrote: "Gorka (obviously), Amy, Katya, Nancy and Michelle. "The reason I suggested these pairing predictions is because Katya has been through enough scandals already especially the Wynne Evans situation last year so best to leave her on the bench to prevent more controversy. "It's about time Vito challenges himself with someone with not as much dance experience or a fair amount of rhythm so Karen Carney would be possible. "Even though Karen Hauer is the oldest female pro still going, I feel Stefan Dennis would be a possible contender for her as this may well be her last year on the show (unless she wants to set the record to overtake Brendan's 15 series and Anton's 18 series then fair enough). "It would also be best if Amy sits this series out to prioritise her health and well being." However, another user disagreed that Katya would be benched for the upcoming series. "I'd be incredibly surprised if Katya was benched. If her controversies were seen as bad enough to not have her compete, I reckon they would just advise her to quit. "From a producing standpoint, Katya may bring controversy, but that controversy brings views and engagement. She has never actually caused issues herself really, its her partners that do it and she gets wrapped up in it. "She's still one of the most popular pros regardless of any controversy, which just shows how good she is. Plus, she is one of the best choreographers, and one of the most consistently entertaining. I'd say that Jowita is the only other female pro that's consistently on the same level."
Daily Mail
42 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Ore Oduba opens up on his sister's heartbreaking suicide as he reveals how their painful loss has changed his whole outlook on life
Ore Oduba has opened up on his sister's heartbreaking suicide and revealed how their tragic loss has changed his whole outlook on life. The presenter, 39, who won Strictly Come Dancing in 2016, told how his family have had have a 'really difficult year' amid the passing of sibling Lola, who died in April. And in a candid new interview, Ore vowed to 'make the most of every single second' as he reflected on his sibling's 'brave' choice to find the peace in death that they couldn't find in life. Speaking on John Reynolds' Extraordinary Life Stories podcast, Ore shared: 'I guess we have been through a really difficult year as a family and I was very ready for that to kick off a new chapter in my life and it did. I'm grateful to him (Dad) for everything he gave us, I wasn't prepared to lose my sister. 'She has been with me every day since. My sister is non binary they told us in their goodbye letter. They've been with me every day since and what my sister did in choosing to find a peace in death that they couldn't find in life; that was strength. That was courage and that was brave.' He continued: 'And having gone through the last four or five years of their life and hearing about their struggles physically and emotionally when actually my sister did more living in the actual five years of their life than the previous 32, and still made a decision that they couldn't carry on living in this world. 'What they did for all of us in those last weeks that has given me the strength every day and my responsibility now is to carry that legacy because nothing is hard compared to what my sister went through.' The TV star then told how his sibling's death has changed his perspective on life, as he vowed not to waste precious time on things that don't really matter. He explained: 'We don't know when our last day is and the truth of it is there isn't time there isn't time so I'm going to make the most of every single second I have left. 'I can't say enough when you have been through something that puts life into perspective your whole outlook changes. None of this stuff matters but you can wrestle what is really important back before it is too late so that is what I'm doing now.' It has been a turbulent time for Ore as he dealt with the loss of Lola in April and his split from wife Portia in October last year. Ore and Portia, who share two young children Roman, seven, and Genie, four, wed in 2015 - five years after they met at Loughborough university in 2010. Announcing the split, Ore wrote: 'Hi guys. Portia and I are sad to announce that we separated earlier this year. We're so grateful for all the love you've shared with us both over the years. 'And we want to thank you in advance for respecting our privacy as we navigated this difficult transition. We will be making no further comment. Be kind, always.' 'I can't say enough when you have been through something that puts life into perspective your whole outlook changes. None of this stuff matters but you can wrestle what is really important back before it is too late so that is what I'm doing now' Speaking to John, Ore also touched on the breakdown of his marriage and how the changes in his life has lead him to rediscovering his faith. When asked about the changes in his made in his search to find purpose, Ore shared: 'Everything. Carte Blanche. I don't really recognise anything that went before now. 'There was a big family change. My wife and I split up 12 months ago and the life before that and the life that I've grown into are just completely they are entirely different. There are no similarities whatsoever other than me in body and I guess I found myself going I have to find a way out of this and it was definitely painful it was definitely confusing and I found myself wanting to learn more. 'I've been doing therapy since 2023 trying to uncover this stuff and with that just reading listening seeking knowledge and you get to a point where you think you know it all and I was like I need to know more. I got back in touch with my faith my Christianity and I spent many years post Strictly Come Dancing. 'I wasn't the best Christian but I'd been in touch with my faith up until Strictly Come Dancing. I used to pray every Friday before Saturday just to put my best foot forward and I couldn't wait to deliver a performance on the Saturday night. 'Obviously things went rather well and Joanna [Clifton] and I came out and won that show completely unexpectedly and at that point definitely career changes and some intention about wanting to go from where I was, which was I had been so grateful to be there, to I need to take a risk I need to go somewhere I believe I'm supposed to be so I made those changes.' 'There was a big family change. My wife and I split up 12 months ago and the life before that and the life that I've grown into are just completely they are entirely different' [Ore and Portia pictured in 2022] He added: 'Funny enough my faith fell completely off a cliff. Unknowingly I stopped praying and believing beyond and this is all unconsciously and I think I though I was now in control of what my life was supposed to look like. 'I was going to look after the family we were going to start a family it was all on me and that level of control started building and building to a point where you think you're in charge of your life and destiny. 'You think you're in charge of all of these people that you're connected to but when things start, well do what life does, and you're not in control of it. it is going to start sending you into a spiral that you just cannot get around. 'And I think there was a point post covid where the authentic me started screaming out was just so suppressed and so suffocated and so kind of terrified and I had no idea what was going on. 'My life was going up in smoke in front of my eyes and I didn't know what to do and as as doors started shutting around me, and the one door that was never closed was the Church. And it started again from there.'
