– see that there are many ways to feel confident, comfortable and beautiful in their own skin,” says Montell Douglas.
, sending them gliding into the quarter-finals.
We speak as Douglas is packing her bags for the Strictly arena tour. “I’ve just got off the phone with my make-up artist,” she says. “As a woman who has spent most of her life in the gym, those are not words I ever expected to hear myself say!”
Born and raised in Lewisham, London, the daughter of Jamaican parents, Douglas says she grew up identifying almost entirely as a “sporty girl”. “I was 5ft 7in by the age of 11. I was taller than all the boys. That never bothered me, I just leant into athletics, where that was an advantage, not an issue.”
But in her charity work visiting schools, she’s seen that “there’s a real problem with girls dropping out of sport when they reach a certain age, usually around 13 or 14. Girls have specific physical and emotional issues, and actually continuing with sport can help – building strength, self-esteem and friendships – if girls are encouraged to stay engaged.”
, British girls drop out of sport at puberty at twice the rate of boys. Of those surveyed, 73 per cent said a dislike of others watching them put them off exercise, and 78 per cent avoided exercise while menstruating. Douglas understands the latter all too well, having suffered from severe menstrual cramps for 20 years until she sought treatment after passing out in hospital. Last year, she partnered with Bupa to launch its new “period plan” encouraging women to seek help instead of suffering symptoms.
Being the “celebrity” face of such campaigns “still seems really weird” to Douglas. “I never aspired to be in the public eye, I don’t think of myself as a celebrity,” she says. “But appearing on Gladiators, then Strictly were opportunities I decided to enjoy to the full.”
She says she had “been through a bereavement – my nan died – and then a relationship break-up” before appearing on Strictly. “So I was not in the best place. I’d been through a rough time. But I found it was a chance to regain some control and express emotion. I had to learn so many new things – I couldn’t even walk in a straight line, let alone in heels!
The thought of being lifted was also challenging – being muscular. That was a lot for a male partner to take on. But Johannes wasn’t scared. I made sure it was like a party every day. Every time we walked out in front of an audience, I felt like a rock star.”
She says Radebe told her at the beginning that he liked working with athletes because they have the discipline to train hard and they want to win. “We clicked instantly. It wasn’t like a teacher/student relationship. We are the same age, we have a similar cultural background – that was something I was so proud to celebrate in our ‘Couple’s Choice’ dance [performed in African-print outfits to Skeleton Move by Master KG].
We cracked each other up and supported each other. I remember when I was getting some hard criticism from the judges and he was worried. He felt he hadn’t prepared me. It was good to tell him, ‘That is one thing you didn’t need to prepare me for!’”
Because Radebe is unable to participate in the tour, Douglas is being partnered by Kai Widdrington, but she assures me that Radebe has picked the two routines they will perform – their salsa, from the Blackpool special, and their joyful quickstep.
As the live tour offers audiences the opportunity to vote for different winners each night, does she feel competitive? “Well, we all want to win,” she laughs. “I’ll be performing in Glasgow on my birthday and I’m going to make a shameless appeal for the glitterball that night.”
The Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour runs until February 9; for tickets and venues: strictlycomedancinglive.com
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