By Jenny Garnsworthy

Copyright walesonline

Strictly Come Dancing participant Vicky Pattison has revealed that you’ll never spot her on a dance floor at a party, as she confessed: “I never know what my legs are going to do next.” Even so, the reality TV star said she is more prepared for being glammed up and ‘Strictly-fied’ for the Saturday night show as she is ‘practically radioactive half the time anyway’. When questioned about her feelings regarding hair extensions and false eyelashes, she said: “This was honestly the bit I was most looking forward to. I’m a Geordie girl so I love my glam and I love my tan – I’m practically radioactive half the time anyway. “Being Strictly-fied isn’t even a leap out of my comfort zone, it’s basically my everyday life.”You will not catch me on the dance floor at a party. I’ve got no dance moves. I’m an absolute novice when it comes to dancing. I’m a bit clumsy, and I never know what my legs are going to do next.” The Strictly participants were interviewed prior to Saturday’s programme – the inaugural live episode of the series – when they and their professional dance partners will receive their first scores from the judging panel. Reality television personality Dani Dyer-Bowen was forced to withdraw due to injury earlier this week, though fellow Love Islander Amber Davies was confirmed as her replacement on Friday. Asked if he had a signature dance move, former The Apprentice contestant Thomas Skinner said: “Yeah, the lawnmower.” He expressed surprise at the reaction he received when attending a football match after being announced as a contestant on the show. Skinner said: “I was at a West Ham game just after I was announced for Strictly, and I got stopped by so many fellas telling me they were going to watch Strictly for the first time because of me. I wasn’t expecting that.” Meanwhile, Former England rugby captain Chris Robshaw shared his motivation for participating in the show was to challenge himself. “When you retire from sport, it is hard to find any adrenaline that matches going out onto the pitch, so I think Strictly gives the perfect opportunity for that,” he said. The father-of-two confessed his go-to move is the ‘classic dad dance’, adding: “I am very much out of my comfort zone. My mum has said I should come along to her Zumba classes to practice.” When asked what Strictly means to him, former sprinter and Gladiators star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, also said: “It’s joy, isn’t it? Proper feel-good family TV. My mum, my little one, my mates… everyone watches it. “It’s the kind of show that brings generations together. To be part of that magic, and maybe inspire people who don’t see themselves as ‘dancers’ to give it a go, means a lot.” Aikines-Aryeetey, also known as Nitro on Gladiators, admitted he was most apprehensive about performing the waltz. “Because my coach can get me to run sub-10 seconds, but no one’s ever taught me how to look graceful while gliding backwards across a ballroom,” he continued. He revealed that his signature dance move is The Nitro Shuffle. “It’s basically me bouncing from foot to foot like I’m waiting for the starter pistol. It works at weddings, birthday… less so in a ballroom.” Fellow sportsman, former footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was asked if he thought there were any similarities between the game and dancing. He said: “I guess being a footballer you are all about the footwork, in certain drills and in warm-ups as well as during the game, but I think dancing is obviously way more centred around the rhythm which isn’t something that necessarily comes with playing football.” When asked what Strictly means to her, La Voix, who was a runner up on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, said ‘pizazz, glamour and fun’. She added: “Strictly is a British institution, and one of the top shows on TV. Tess and Claudia are as iconic as Patsy and Edina, or Cagney and Lacey. I’m showing my age here.” Emmerdale star Lewis Cope said his signature move would be either a backflip or jazz splits. “I haven’t done either in a while, so let’s see if I can still pull them out of the bag,” he added. Cope said his castmates would be cheering him on in the BBC audience. “Beth Cordingly and Will Ash, who play my parents, have both said they’re so excited to watch me,” he added. “And Natalie J Robb too – they’ve all been so supportive.” Actress Alex Kingston said she had been ‘banging on about Strictly for 20 years’ and is nervous about performing the quickstep and jive. “When I was a little girl, my dad used to jive with me and he was a brilliant jive dancer, as was my mum,” she added. “But their jiving was very different to a Strictly jiving. Strictly jiving is much more energetic and dynamic so I feel a bit nervous about tackling that.” Entertainment reporter Ross King said he was feeling ‘a lot of pressure, but in a lovely way’ ,to be representing his native Scotland. “Every single dance fills me with absolute dread – every single one,” he added. “But there’s a great Scottish dance called the slosh, which is basically Scottish line dancing. If I could incorporate that in any way then I’d be happy.” Australian actor Stefan Dennis, who played Paul Robinson in Neighbours on and off over 40 years, said he was ‘blown away by the scale of Strictly’ in the UK. He added: “I think if I get a dramatic dance like a tango or a paso doble, leaning into Paul Robinson could be quite helpful. “Every soap had a villain, and I was the resident one for Neighbours, but hopefully I’ll be less evil with my feet.”