Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke says he and his wife want to avoid influencing their children to follow gender stereotypes.
The 55-year-old ballroom dancer spoke to Hello! about their decision, as he shared his pride for Strictly’s reputation for being at the ‘forefront of inclusivity.’
He told the entertainment magazine: ‘This year is no different with John (Whaite) and Johannes (Radebe) dancing together, and Rose being the first deaf person in the competition.
‘It just goes to show how Strictly mirrors what is going on in the wider society.’
Continuing to praise the show’s dedication to representation, the judge – who has been on Strictly since day one – added: ‘Through my years of watching professional dance, more often than not I’ve seen two men – Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, for example – but interestingly, rarely two women.’
Anton said that he and his wife Hannah have given ‘no encouragement in either direction’ around gender with their four-year-old twins, George and Henrietta.
‘We’ve told them, “You can do what you like, wear what you like,” but George likes Spiderman and Hot Wheels, and Henrietta likes butterflies and unicorns,’ he said.
He shared that little George ‘crashes around more than she does, but there was no encouragement in either direction.’
The author added that he would be ‘delighted’ to return to the show in future if he was asked, after he stepped in to replace Bruno Tonioli this series when Covid restrictions prevented him from travelling.
He said producers ‘wouldn’t even have to finish the sentence’ as he’s ‘loved every second of it.’
Series 19 has only just finished, but there’s already speculation around who’ll sit at the judge’s desk next year.
There are reports that Strictly bosses are keen to keep Anton on as a dancer, should Bruno return, and want to offer him a pay rise as ‘a sweetener.’
Anton completed his first stint on the judging panel alongside Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood and Motsi Mabuse this weekend, when the final saw Rose Ayling-Ellis take home the glitter ball.
A whopping 11 million viewers tuned in to watch her and partner Giovanni Pernice be crowned the winners, with first male-male partnership John and Johannes finishing as runners up.
Credit: Original article published here.You can read this post on My Celebrity Life.