I thought it was the last dance

Strictly’s Laura reveals ankle injury agony

LAURA WHITMORE has revealed she feared her Strictly dreams were over because of an ankle injury.

TV presenter Laura, 31, was forced to miss last week’s show on doctor’s orders after gruelling rehearsals left her unable to even walk.

And she was only able to take to the floor last night after a whirlwind blitz of doctor’s appointments.

“I’ve seen three different doctors to get their opinions,” Laura told The Sunday Post.

“I’ve never seen so many doctors in my life. I am being looked after.

“The fear last week was that I could have torn the ligament which would cause permanent damage.”

Dublin girl Laura was given a diagnosis of repetitive strain injury which required having the fluid removed by an injection in her ankle.

It was so bad that she was pulled from training two days before last week’s show and had five days of total rest.

That meant last Saturday’s show was watched from home in the company of her pal who had flown over from Ireland especially, expecting to be in the audience.

“I feared my Strictly dream was over,” confided Laura.

“I didn’t stop crying. I’ve never cried so much. Watching at home with my friend, eating a curry and knowing I should be there was so hard.

“I don’t want to let anyone down which is what I felt last week. So many people give up so much for this and not being able to take part meant I felt like a bit of a failure.”

Laura, known for her work on the spin-off show for I’m A Celebrity, has been on anti-inflammatories but not painkillers to mask the injury.

But before taking to the floor with partner Giovanni Pernice for their tango to The Rolling Stones’ Paint It Black, she admitted her training time had been slashed.

“There have been lots of obstacles but there’s plenty of fight in me.

“What my head says and my body can do are two different things. We are all giving it everything and I won’t use this as an excuse not to dance.”

But having had less rehearsal time than anyone else and having been in the dance-off before, she knows she could be in peril in tonight’s result show.

“The Strictly dream can be over any week for any of us,” she says.

“All you can do is go out there and do your best. There can be a lot of drama but I’m so happy to be here.”

Last night’s Halloween-themed extravaganza is likely to have helped Strictly maintain its massive advantage over The X Factor which has been languishing four million behind in the ratings.

Ed Balls has been one of the standouts, even if only for the lift last week that nearly saw partner Katya Jones take a tumble.

“I don’t think anyone is weak this year – Ed has musicality,” adds Laura.

Strictly Come Dancing: The Results, BBC1, 7.15pm.