DANNY’S EARLY DAYS
EVERY parent wants their children to have a better life than they did but it took a recent question from his son for Danny John-Jules to realise just how different their upbringings were.
The moment came when 12-year-old Dante asked for an ensuite bathroom added to his bedroom.
Danny said: “Me, my brother and sister had one bath a week, three of us together after putting money in the meter.
“The rest of the time, we washed in a plastic bowl with a flannel. So I told my son, ‘You’ve already got a phone that’s worth more than my entire upbringing’.”
The 57-year-old actor may now be in showbiz but his childhood was anything but glamorous. He grew up in a flat in West London’s tough Cheltenham estate and worked from the age of 12.
Danny said: “Mum and dad split up when I was six. My gran lived with us and had three jobs. Mum worked all her life.
“This was the 60s, when women didn’t have the same rights. If you left your husband you were a social leper. You stuck by your husband, even if he was throwing you around the room.
“So it was about survival. I had a paper round when I was a kid, had jobs on a second-hand stall, building site, hospital, warehouse and hair salon before I got into the business. I don’t know any other way than hard work.”
Danny now has a £1million Notting Hill home where he lives with partner Petula Langlais and children Dante and Danae, 10. But success was hard earned.
After acting classes in a “pigeon-bitten rusty old church hall”, Danny starred in the West End for a decade before his role as Cat in sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf.
Filming in the Caribbean for Death in Paradise – he plays Officer Dwayne Myers – gave him an opportunity to reconnect with estranged dad Hyram.
Danny said: “For the last 30 years, dad lived in Dominica, one island from Guadeloupe where we film.
“So two years ago, I brought him, mum and the entire family together for the first time since 1966.
“At first, my brother had no interest in going. He couldn’t bear the thought of reconciliation with my dad. He had to struggle through university on his own and became a barrister. But we all came together before dad died last year.”
Growing up as a child of divorce made Danny acutely aware of the infamous Strictly curse, but he joked: “I only joined for the curse. I’ve been trying to get rid of the missus for years.”
He and Petula have been happily together for 17 years and survived the seven years of absences filming Death in Paradise. Danny said: “I think we should dispel the curse. In any industry where you’re chucked into a room with 30 or 40 new people, stuff happens.
“I was on the West End show when Fred Molina and Jill Gascoine met and they’re together 30 years later. So is it a curse or blessing? I’d call that a blessing.”
Danny is the oldest Strictly contestant – the youngest, at 24, is Paralympian Lauren Steadman – but he reckons he’d win in any dance-off with his kids and has a far more stamina than millennials.
He said: “My kids can floss but I know the Bus Stop and the Hustle. And do millennials have a lesser work ethic? God, yeah. I’ve done workshops and before I’ve asked them to do anything they’re like, ‘Oh, I’m so tired’. I’m like, Whaaaat?’”
Danny’s energy might come from
his massive intake of calories since signing for Strictly – starting with a full roast for breakfast every day.
He said: “I have a couple of Weetabix then go to the caff across the road for a Sunday dinner – three lamb chops, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, cabbage and carrots.
“I’ve burned that off by lunchtime and am gagging for food. So lunch is curry with brown rice. Then I have a proper evening meal like spaghetti.
“I have to be careful not to lose too much weight because everyone thinks I’m ill. If I didn’t eat like that, I’d weigh nine stone by now.”
Managing his diet is a trick Danny has learned in three decades of West End theatre and TV.
But he’s keen to point out that he is not a trained dancer. He said: “Trained dancer means you went to dance school, got a diploma. I’m experienced but that’s different.
“Am I any more experienced than Faye Tozer, Lee Ryan or Ashley Roberts? None of us have done any ballroom or Latin. It’s like learning a new language. I felt completely inadequate in my first week.” Most of his moves were honed in discos and he had a few lessons with Strictly judge Bruno Tonioli in the 80s. But he insists Bruno will show no mercy, adding: “Bruno isn’t going to give us an easy time, not in a million years.” In his clubbing days, Danny was hired to dance with Wham! alongside Andrew Ridgeley and the late George Michael. “I’ve not got a bad word to say about George,” he said. “I flew on the same plane and stayed in the same hotels as him. I had four all-silk bespoke suits, got to travel about America, play Wembley and a limousine for a week to take friends and family. Anyone who had a boss like George would be happy.”
One thing not making Danny happy was a story claiming he was £21,000 in debt. It’s the first time his smile slips. He said: “I called my accountant and said, ‘I want to double check, am I in debt?’ She laughed. The ironic thing is, I owed that money to myself. “But even if I was in debt, so what?” This week, Danny gets top marks from his dance partner Amy Dowden – who then said in a whisper: “We train for 10 hours but most of that Danny spends chatting to people.” ●Strictly Come Dancing, BBC1, 6.15pm tonight.