WE NEED STRICTLY – IT’S ALL BEEN A BIT DOOM AND GLOOM

Back on our TV screens, the most affable man in Britain talks ballrooms, babies and books with Jo Carnegie

he joys of working from home. heat is in a rural location and gearing up to call Anton du Beke for this interview. It’s been in the diary for ages and we have been given 30 precious minutes of Anton’s time. Only, at the last minute, both the phone reception and the Wi-fi decide to die. Nightmare! After all, we’ve got so much to cover, from Strictly being back on our screens (how do you do a paso doble in a pandemic?) and becoming a first-time dad at 50 (twins, no less), to Anton’s latest book A Christmas To Remember, a wonderfully evocative novel set around the posh Buckingham Hotel in 1930s London. Consequently, we spend the first seven minutes of the interview running around, waving our phone in the air and shouting, “Can you hear us now?” Luckily, Anton is just as good-natured in real life – when we can hear him – and hangs on patiently. Just as heat is debating whether to climb the nearest telegraph pole to try to get better reception, both it and the Wi-fi miraculously come back on. Phew.

For the millionth time, how does that sound? Hi, my love. That sounds great! How are you? I’m very well, thank you very much indeed. Where are you? I’m in Buckinghamshire. What are you up to? Well, right, today I’m trying to buy car insurance. Glamorous... It’s costing me about 4million quid, so I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve that. Other than that, I’m just sort of chatting on the phone. You haven’t got minions to do your car insurance – we like the fact you’re still keeping it real... [Laughs] Yes, exactly. Keeping it expensive is what it is! Let’s go straight to the book, A Christmas To Remember. It’s been