Forget all those lovers. Caroline’s naughtiest secret is that she’s actually a trained dancer
IN TONIGHT’S STRICTLY FINAL
Anyone watching this year’s Strictly Come Dancing will be familiar with contestant Caroline Flack’s post-dance routine. After leaving the floor on the arm of hunky dance partner Pasha Kovalev, she’ll often put a hand up to her face to hide her emotions, occasionally even shedding a photogenic tear of relief that they have danced so well.
of course, anyone learning to dance in the very public spotlight of Strictly would be forgiven for being relieved that a routine had gone well.
But should TV presenter Caroline really be so surprised that she’s pulled off yet another brilliant, high-octane performance? or might her reaction be somewhat disingenuous?
For, with the 35-year- old tipped to lift the famous glitterball trophy in the series finale tonight, the Mail can reveal for the first time that Caroline is actually a professionally trained dancer.
She spent three years studying the discipline at the Bodywork Dance Company in Cambridge, emerging with a musical theatre qualification at the age of 20.
While other contestants such as Pixie Lott, Simon Webbe and Frankie Bridge have come under fire for having gone to stage school for years or danced in bands, thereby seemingly gaining an advantage in the competition, Caroline’s managed to keep her previous experience mostly under the radar, citing only a ‘performing arts course’.
She even played down her time on BBC3’s Dancing on Wheels show — where she was coached by Strictly professional Kristina Rihanoff to dance with a wheelchair-bound partner — describing i t as more of a ‘documentary’ than a contest.
But our investigation has discovered that, in fact, Caroline has been mad about dance since she was at school, where she took ballet lessons, performed i n shows and l ater j oined a dance troupe.
And although you will struggle to find mention of it in the numerous interviews she has done since starting the show, she pursued this after school and is remembered as the cream of the crop of those in her year at Bodywork.
The school’s staff also appear to not want to talk about it: they turned down our request for an interview this week.
But Karen Laogun, 48, whose 30-year-old son Jay Banks’s time at Bodywork crossed over with Caroline’s, told us: ‘She was a great dancer even back then.
‘She did loads of dance, jazz, the lot. She did a degree and I watched the show for her leaving graduation. I would say she was probably the best in the class, she was really talented.’
one poster to an internet message board observed: ‘My wife (an ex-professional dancer) and I were looking at the images of who is in the line-up for Strictly Come Dancing 2014 and she was surprised to see Caroline Flack. The reason is that Flack used to be two years below her when my wife studied dancing at the Bodywork Dance Company where she (Flack) earned the nickname of “Twiglet”.
‘So, they get a load of “celebs” on, many of whom have never danced, and expect them to compete against a trained professional.’
The BBC this week admitted that Flack had trained in dance but offered no comment on the issue.
even so, Caroline — who until joining the dance competition was more famous for dating a host of muchyounger men than any professional achievement — remains the hot favourite to win tonight.
William Hill has her odds at 6-4 to win and she’s still the only contestant who has managed the perfect score of 40 in the entire series.
Indeed, Caroline has admitted she’s hoping that Strictly will lead to a string of roles on the West end stage.
In an interview last week she said: ‘I’ve found I really enjoy this kind of thing, so maybe I could do something like a musical.
‘That was what I wanted to do when I was younger and now I’m thinking, “Maybe I could tread the boards.” ’
After leaving Bodywork, Flackers — as she’s known on Strictly — unsuccessfully auditioned for roles in several West end musicals, including Cats and Les Miserables. A career in TV presenting, which had never been her plan, followed instead.
Her big break came in 2002, when she was cast as an actress in the sketch show Bo’Selecta! then began to present the International Pepsi Chart show.
A spell on the BBC children’s show TMi followed before she replaced Kirsty Gallacher as the host of Sky one’s Gladiators, then progressed to presenting spin-off shows for The X Factor and I’m A Celebrity . . .Get Me out of Here!
PeRHAPS unsurprisingly, during this period she admits to being ‘ wild’. She was often found to be propping up the bar of the notorious Hawley Arms pub in Camden, north London, with her drug-addict friends Amy Winehouse and Pete Doherty.
‘I’ve turned up for work still drunk,’ she’s admitted.
Her chequered love life could also have been termed ‘wild’. Indeed, it’s been so busy that it reads rather l i ke a Who’s Who of t he TV entertainment world.
In 2011, she was at the centre of a media storm when she started dating one Direction’s Harry Styles, then 17 years old to her 32.
naturally, the band’s fans were appalled. ‘ Shame on you!’ cried one. ‘Does he call you Mummy?’ asked another.
The backlash was vicious enough for her t o seek t herapy after t he three-month fling ran its course.
Caroline seems to collect interesting young men in the way that schoolboys once acquired stamps.
Before Harry Styles, there was Prince Harry — whom she reputedly nicknamed ‘jam’ because he was red (headed) and sweet.
They went on numerous dates in 2009, after being introduced by a mutual friend while he was on a break from Chelsy Davy, and she even stayed over one night at Clarence House.
Caroline has since insisted nothing happened — i nstead s he and Harry, who is five years her junior, were ‘ consoling’ each other over broken romances.
‘ He’s a friend and I regard our friendship highly,’ she said.
Then there was Declan Donnelly, who was apparently bowled over by her flirtatious nature and long legs back in 2008.
Again, she insists there was no romance, although it appears he was — fruitlessly — quite smitten for a time. As was Joe Swash, her co-presenter on the I’m A Celebrity spin-off, Get Me out of Here now!
‘I don’t think anything happened with her and Joe, but she has quite an effect on men,’ said a co-worker on the show.
THeRe was also talk that pop star olly Murs, her cohost on The X Factor’s ITV2 spin- off The Xtra Factor, was similarly smitten. And comedian James Corden was spotted in a series of clinches with ‘Flacky’ in a dark corner of a Camden pub not long after the Prince Harry affair. That’s not to f orget her three- year ‘ on/ off ’ romance with drummer Dave Danger (real name Dave Healy) of The Holloways.
A hook-up with comedian noel Fielding is, however, denied, as are rumours of liaisons with Russell Brand and Jack osbourne.
even her spokesman, Alex Mullen, has had to concede his charge has lived a little. ‘She’s had an interesting life,’ he said. ‘ She had a great time in her 20s.’
yet Caroline’ s most serious relationship has been her l atest. Indeed, she was so convinced music manager Jack Street — 26 to her 35 — was ‘ The one’, s he t exted him after their first date 18 months ago referring to herself as ‘Caroline Street’.
But the pair, who had been living together at her north London flat, recently broke up, breaking her heart.
Rumours abound that Street, who manages rising pop star Sam Smith, may have had a wandering eye.
Her publicist insists that the split was mutual and amicable. Whatever the truth, her distress is evident. When he reminded fans on Twitter last weekend to: ‘ Vote for @carolineflack1. you’d be silly not too [sic],’ she snapped back: ‘easing your guilt??? Fill yourself with glee jack.’
She quickly deleted the tweet and replaced it with: ‘It’s not bad to be sad.’
ever the professional, she’s been hiding her distress on Strictly.
Let’s hope that if she lifts that glitterball trophy tonight, she may finally get over her broken heart.
FRANKIE BRIDGE, 25
POP princess Frankie has been in showbusiness since she joined S Club Juniors, a spin off from the band S Club 7, at the age of 12. Born in Havering, Essex, she attended stage school in Romford and went on to join The Saturdays in 2007. They have had 13 top-ten hits. She is mum to Parker, one, by former England footballer Wayne Bridge, whom she married this summer. She has spoken of battling depression and panic attacks since she was 15. Her Strictly progress has been stellar. Teamed with Kevin Clifton, she has never been in the dance-off and is the only celebrity who has never scored below 30. She holds the highest marks this series for the Viennese waltz, tango, quickstep and rumba. Of her chances tonight, she says: ‘I don’t have any expectations. Everyone is so good.’
MARK WRIGHT, 27
THE outsider at 12-1, Mark Wright beat EastEnder Jake Wood in the dance-off last weekend to reach the final. He said this week that, despite his cheerful demeanour, he has been left in physical pain by the demands of training with pro Karen Hauer. ‘Every time I twist my back, I hear ten cracks. My ankles, my groin — everything is hurting in every place.’ From Buckhurst Hill, Essex, he was a semi-professional footballer with a place in the youth team at Spurs. He was friends with the late reality TV star Jade Goody and the best man at her wedding to Jack Tweed. Since appearing on The Only Way Is Essex, he’s been on I’m A Celebrity and fronted ITV2’s Party Wright Around the World. He is engaged to former Coronation Street actress Michelle Keegan and hosts a show on Heart FM.