Helen: I’m doing it for my 3 kids

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COUNTRYFILE host Helen Skelton is thrilled to take part in Strictly but her three young kids are less impressed.

Millions of TV viewers will watch the ex-blue Peter presenter dance but she is unsure if Ernie, seven, Louis, five, and Elsie, seven months, will be among them.

Helen, 39 said: “I love watching it but my kids aren’t into it at all which is annoying.”

She signed for the show just months after Leeds Rhino rugby league star Richie Myler, 32, ended their eight-year marriage.

He has since started dating the club president’s daughter, Stephanie Thirkill, 32.

Even though her kids are not Strictly fans, they are a main reason for Helen taking part. She said: “I just want my kids to believe they can do anything they want.

Emotional

“I want to show them that if mummy can do it, then they can do it too.

“I just want to be a good role model for our kids and lead by example.”

Strictly’s schedule is hectic, with long days rehearsing and little time off.

But Helen is used to balancing work and home life. She said she took her kids to the swimming European and World Championship and was breastfeeding between interviews.

She has just landed another high-profile telly gig, fronting Me Time, a new feature on ITV’S Lorraine about physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.

Helen said her priorities for her kids have changed. She said: “The more I go through life I just want them to be happy and confident. You see so many teenagers scared of their own shadows. I don’t want them to be the best reader in class or the top performer, I just want them to go into school smiling and come out smiling.”