Widdy: I didn’t fancy Anton
Ann says her ‘handsome’ Strictly partner was too young for her
ANN Widdecombe says she avoided a Strictly Come Dancing romance – because she did not fancy partner Anton du Beke.
The former Tory MP, 70, said that while Anton, 51, is handsome, she would not have fallen for him due to their two-decade age difference. Asked if they might have succumbed to the Strictly curse that has seen a string of celebrities and dance partners fall for each other, Ann, who was on the BBC show in 2010, scoffed: “You are joking. I’m 20 years older. Dear me.”
Ann, who is single, adds of married Anton: “He’s a very handsome man, but I can look at handsome men and appreciate them without being attracted.”
TV host Rachel Riley and rugby’s Ben Cohen left their spouses for Strictly partners. And Ann can understand how the show sparks passion. She tells the Mirror: “You’re in close contact with someone intensely over weeks and weeks. “You’re training every day and putting quite an emotional investment into trying to win.” Ann was speaking ahead of World Water Day on Thursday, which she marked by visiting Mauritania in north-west Africa with the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad.