Angela Scanlon on Strictly: I learned to be stiff as a board doing Irish dancing
By Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter
TV presenter Angela Scanlon has spoken about her early days doing Irish dancing ahead of competing on Strictly Come Dancing.
The 39-year-old Ask Me Anything host, originally from Ratoath, Co Meath, will be donning sequins as she makes her first appearance along with 14 other contestants on the BBC One show on Saturday.
Scanlon, also known for fashion programmes Virgin Media One’s Xpose and RTÉ’s Off The Rails, was asked about her dancing experience and said: “I did Irish dancing when I was younger.
“Where you’re expressly told to remain stiff as a board from the waist up, so I’m not sure how that’s going to go down in Latin or in Ballroom.”
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The only woman in the UK and Ireland to have their own Saturday night chat show also said she feels “weirdly ready to engross myself in some sequins and glitter”.
She also said: “I’m all in – well I think I am. I’m quite a tomboy, so in theory I love it, but it’s the ladylike things that make me feel a little more uncomfortable.
“I’m usually either in jeans and a jumper or I’m in a tall skirt and a sweater. I’m up for it, I’ve kind of gone: ‘I’m going to surrender to it all.'”
Scanlon has also presented BBC Two’s Robot Wars with comedian Dara O’Briain before it ended and the channel’s Your Home Made Perfect series.
She spoke about how she saw former Strictly winner, comedian Bill Bailey’s performance as “empowering” and last year’s top duo British wildlife presenter Hamza Yassin and professional Jowita Przystal as being “breathtaking”.
However, Scanlon dismissed the idea that she has her eye on the glitterball trophy.
She added: “I’d love to get to Blackpool because I believe the floor is bouncy and I like the sound of that. But no, I’m trying to be involved in the process, not the outcome.”
Last year marked the first time since 2019, after a break due to the pandemic, that Strictly returned to the prestigious Tower Ballroom.
To get ready for the celebrity dance programme Scanlon is doing “reformer Pilates, so lots of stretching and the odd run around the park” as she has not been “very physically active for a few years”.
She added: “I’m kind of thinking: ignorance is bliss, I don’t know if that’s the right approach, but we’ll see.”
Other Irish stars to have featured include TV presenter Gloria Hunniford, singer Daniel O’Donnell, former Love Island presenter Laura Whitmore and Mrs Brown’s Boys actress Jennifer Gibney.
The One Show presenter Scanlon, who married businessman Roy Horgan in 2014 and has two daughters, is also a published author and host of positivity podcast Thanks A Million.
She brought out her 2022 part-memoir, part-self-help book Joyrider, which charts her own journey into the world of self-development.
It looks at her grappling with anxiety and imposter syndrome throughout her teens and 20s, and the bulimia she lived with for 15 years.
Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse will be returning as judges when Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturday, September 16th on BBC One.
