Strictly star reveals why Doctor Who role was ‘dream come true'
Ayling-Ellis, who is deaf, collaborated with showrunner Russell T Davies to adapt her character, Aliss, who was not originally written as deaf.
Speaking at the Hay Festival, Ayling-Ellis expressed her lifelong love for 'Doctor Who' and revealed how she 'teared up' when she saw the Tardis on set, describing it as a 'dream come true'.
Ayling-Ellis highlighted the lack of funding for children's education in the deaf community, emphasising that hearing aids and cochlear implants are not substitutes for specialist support.
The Hay Festival, in partnership with The Independent, is hosting The News Review, featuring discussions on current headlines with figures from various fields.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
a few seconds ago
- BBC News
Former women's footballer Karen Carney on Strictly Come Dancing line-up
"She used to be a breakdancer when she was younger... obviously a very different kind of dancing but she's definitely got rhythm."Perhaps not what you would expect to hear about former Birmingham City Women star and now football pundit, Karen Carney, from her fellow former Blues teammate, Kerys Harrop, said she had seen plenty of Karen's moves on the dance floor, which is why she believes she will do well as one of the contestants in the upcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing."It's just whether she can transfer that to the Latin and the ballroom... I think that's why I'm really excited, because I know she can dance, but seeing it in a different style will be interesting," she said. As well as the Blues, Karen also played for Chelsea, Arsenal and is now the lead female pundit for both men and women's football across TNT and 144 caps, she is also England's third most capped player, competing at four World Cups, four European Championships and the London Olympics, before retiring in 2019."I'm definitely used to her more in a football kit," said her former teammate. Ms Harrop was captain of the Blues and spent 20 years at the club."Kaz is quite an introverted character, quite shy, but definitely that's come out more as she's got into the punditry," she said."In terms of the dancing side, she kind of hid it as a bit of a hidden talent... so it'll be good to see her doing it live on TV in front of millions of people - she can't really afford to be shy there can she?"She'll come over really well, she's a really nice person, really bubbly."Ms Harrop added that Karen is competitive, which would bode well for the competition."To make it to England and play in World Cup tournaments and win trophies, you've definitely got to be competitive," she said."It's great exposure for the women's game, coming off the back of the Euros as well, it's kind of perfect timing to have another female footballer on." Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Sun
a few seconds ago
- The Sun
George Clarke hits back at Strictly curse as he reveals ‘real reason' he went public with girlfriend weeks before launch
GEORGE Clarke has hit back at the Strictly curse as he revealed the 'real reason' he went public with girlfriend. Just hours before the news of his participation in the dancing series was unveiled, the 25-year-old YouTuber announced his relationship. 7 7 The online personality was the sixth star to have signed up to dance in front of the judges on Strictly Come Dancing. Just beforehand, he revealed that he was dating lingerie model Yasmin Amelia - also known as Yasmin Bennett. His fans on Reddit claimed that he was taken, but noted that he has usually kept his cards close to his chest when it came to his personal life. One wrote on the forum platform: "Caught me off guard because he is a very private person especially about his dating/love life. "Even on the pod he has expressed his desire to keep things private and off socials. "Often relies on the 'can't talk to women'/catfish story to dodge specific relationship questions." However, the star has now broken his silence over the timing, saying that he wanted 'full control' of the narrative. Speaking on the Useless Hotline Podcast, he admitted: "That's part of the reason why we wanted to say something. "Because the two options were, say something. You have full control over how it comes out." However, the star rubbished the infamous 'Strictly Curse', as he claimed that it would not affect him. Strictly's George Clarke 'gives away' who his pro dance partner is George said: "Whatever you say is basically how people find out, or it stays private." He then explained that he didn't want there to be any rumours or anything that could ruin his relationship. The star added: "[it] just sort of takes all the control out of your hands. "But then, I [will] just go on stream after that and be like, that's not true, by the way. "But, yeah, she's my girlfriend." He also said that his girlfriend is still her own person and is getting used to being thrown into the public eye. This comes after he may have accidentally let slip who he's partnered with for this year's series. On the podcast he also spoke about the audition process where he revealed that he was partnered with Lauren Oakley. He also admitted that the duo rehearsed for a full hour together, as he explained: "I've not met anyone apart from, I believe her name's Lauren, who was the pro that I met. "Because when we had a interview for it, so it's like an hour long interview, and then like an hour long dance session." Lauren has appeared on the show since 2022, and so far has competed with two stars – Krishnan Guru-Murthy, who placed 8th, and JB Gill last year. She took over from fellow pro Amy Dowden mid-season after she was forced to withdraw due to injury. 7 7 7 7
Daily Mirror
30 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Strictly Come Dancing's Anton Du Beke sends grim warning to 2025 stars
Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke has sent a 'grim warning' to the cast of 2025, as the star-studded line up prepare to take on the first live show next month Anton Du Beke sent a grim warning to the cast of Strictly Come Dancing during Wednesday morning's episode of Lorraine, hosted by former Strictly Come Dancing contestant, Ranvir Singh. Last week, the BBC show released the star-studded line up for the new series, including EastEnders ' Balvinder Sopal, former Love Island winner, Dani Dyer and Lorraine's very own LA entertainment Correspondent, Ross King. The series is set to kick off on the broadcaster on 20th September – and as the celebrities begin rehearsing for the live shows – Anton has a grim warning. Giving his best piece of advice to the new recruits, Anton expressed: "It's so cliché, but have a great time. Embrace it, really embrace it. Because you'll only get one go at this, you never get asked back. Just give it your best shot! Try and leave the inhibitions at the door, and enter with a free mind and a free spirit." However, the Strictly judge did have one 'grim' warning for the contestants, as he warned them about chafing. "I'd wear good under garments if I were you," he warned them. "There'll be a lot of movement - stuff that you've never done before, and there will definitely be chafing!" Following the warning, Anton and Ranvir took to the dance floor in the studio, as Ranvir, who was paired with former Strictly pro Giovanni Pernice in 2020, wanted to see if she'd "still got it". As they took to the dancefloor, Anton praised Ranvir for her dancing skills, telling her she should "make a comeback" to the show. The father of two was also shown a clip of Lorraine's Ross King dancing in the studio before he takes to the big stage, although the judge seemed less than impressed. It comes just days after entertainment correspondent Ross gave fans an insight into the show's rehearsals, revealing that he's struggling to recover from the first few days. "I've spent the whole weekend in the bath. I've just been lying in the bath recovering. I was shattered after Friday," he said. Despite the pain - the star said it was a "dream come true" to join the show. "I can't wait to learn from the best, meet my fellow contestants, and, most importantly… try not to step on too many toes! Let's give this the best that I can!" he said.
