CRAIG REVEL HORWOOD
CRAIG REVEL HORWOOD SPEAKS TO OK!’S KAT ROMERO ABOUT THE RETURN OF THE DANCE SHOW AND WEDDING PLANS WITH HIS FIANCE JONATHAN
After so many months of uncertainty and difficulty, Craig Revel Horwood tells OK! he’s thrilled to have Strictly Come Dancing back on our screens for a bit of feel-good entertainment. The 55-year-old exclusively revealed to OK! his engagement to fiancé Jonathan Myring, 35, in March and admits the pair have used the time in lockdown to plan. “We wanted to host a big engagement party but I feel like it will be at least a year or so before we can!” he tells us.
Craig recently admitted he feared he wouldn’t be able to afford his affluent lifestyle during early lockdown as theatres suffered and pantomimes looked certain to be cancelled. But he kept himself busy, penning his novel Dances And Dreams On Diamond Street. The book is largely inspired by Craig’s early life as a dancer in London’s Camden in the 90s – hoping to move into choreography.
Opening up about how far he’s come since those early days, the star says, “I never envisioned myself in this position. It’s been a wild ride and I’m very thankful for it all.”
Here, Craig talks about his royal fans, wedding plans and what he won’t miss about this year’s Strictly...
Are you excited for Strictly to be back on our screens?
Yes, I think it’s the pick-me-up that we all need after a difficult year. It’s that feeling of normality and comfort after months of uncertainty that I hope people will appreciate.
Your co-judge Bruno Tonioli will have to work on the show remotely at first as he’s filming
Dancing With The Stars in America. Will you miss him?
Of course. I’ll miss his vivacious energy. I love him and the fact that he’s totally mad. We usually have dressing rooms next to each other and the walls are paper thin! Not that it matters, I can hear his laughter and screeching a mile off! So that’s one plus. I will have a nice quiet start to the series.
Strictly is so popular, do you have celebs begging you to get them on the show?
Yes, frequently! Which is funny because when the series first started back in 2004, everyone was terrified to do it. Now we have people desperate to. Every year around the time of casting I start getting a flurry of emails from celebs asking for a favour. As if I have that sort of power. Who has asked? I couldn’t possibly name names, darling! If I had my way, Sharon Osbourne and Simon Cowell would be on the show. They’re my dream names.
And the Queen is a big fan... Yes, the royals love Strictly. I took the Duchess of Cornwall on a tour
‘I’ll miss Bruno. I love him and the fact that he’s totally mad’
of the studio a while back and we even danced together. It’s funny to think when we’re filming the show the Queen sits at home watching it. But it’s certainly nice to have her as a fan!
There were rumours that Gemma Collins could be taking part in this series. Would you love to see her on the show one day? Yes, I think she’d be fab. She proved on Dancing On Ice how entertaining she was when she fell on her face and slid into the wings! She’s a reality star but we’ve had Mark Wright on and he started on TOWIE. Gemma’s one of those celebs who has forged her own career. She’s a big name and a major personality so I’d love to see her dance.
You got engaged just before lockdown. Have you managed to celebrate yet?
We wanted to host a big engagement party but I feel like it will be at least a year or so before we can. Everything’s been set back. The good thing about lockdown is it has given Jonathan and I time to plan what we really want for our big day.
What would you like to do?
Well, we’ve decided on a romantic wedding at home. We’ll get married in the forest garden and then a party will spill out into the grounds by the house. I did say I was waiting for the vine leaves in my garden to grow first so we could serve our own wine but as everything has been delayed due to Covid, we haven’t managed to plant anything yet!
Tell us about your new book Dances And Dreams On Diamond Street…
It’s inspired by my life in Camden as a dancer in the 90s. I lived in this house share and there were about six of us, all crammed in! It’s the story of a young dancer trying to get on in the world. When I released my autobiography, there were so many amazing stories and anecdotes that didn’t make it in. So I thought, “Why not make them into a fiction book?”
Do any of your friends recognise themselves as characters?
Yes! They said, “How dare you?!” and I said, “It’s fiction, darling!” The main character, Danny, is based on me but that’s obvious.
Did writing the book make you appreciate how far you’ve come?
Yes, I never envisioned myself in this position. Even though when you’re young, you feel invincible and you’re full of hope. It’s still been a wild ride and I’m very thankful for it all.