Ruth Langsford Reflects on Awkward Strictly Moment with Anton Du Beke

Ruth Langsford, the well-known television presenter, recently shared a memorable moment from her time on the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing that she still finds cringeworthy. During her participation in the show in 2017, Langsford was paired with professional dancer Anton Du Beke, a partnership she had eagerly anticipated. Despite her overall enjoyment of the experience, she recalls one incident that continues to haunt her.

In her recently published book, Feeling Fabulous: Be Your Best Self, No Matter What Life Throws at You, Langsford recounted the moment she learned of her pairing with Du Beke. She described the excitement that built as her name was announced, leading to an impulsive reaction that she would later regret. “They called out my name and there may have been a drum roll,” she wrote. “I’m not sure I drew a single breath in that time, until they said I was partnered with . . . dramatic pause . . . ‘Anton Du Beke!’”

This excitement turned into an embarrassing leap toward Du Beke. “My calm walk towards him suddenly turned into an ungainly run, like a cart-horse, and I launched myself at him,” she explained. Unfortunately, her jump did not go as planned. “I didn’t leap high enough, so instead of hooking my legs around his waist, I ended up with them around his thighs, and he was hanging on to me for dear life.”

Reflecting on the moment, Langsford admitted that she struggles to watch the footage. “I can’t watch this back now because it makes me cringe,” she said. She noted that Du Beke often embellishes the story during his theatre shows, which adds a humorous twist to the memory. On one occasion, he even invited her on stage to reenact the incident, leaving her in fits of laughter.

Facing Nerves and Panic Attacks

Langsford also opened up about the intense nerves she experienced during rehearsals and the panic attack she suffered before her first performance. She described her growing anxiety leading up to her dance, stating, “As time passed, my nerves got worse and worse, and I had a deep sense of dread in the pit of my stomach.”

On the day of her performance, she recalled descending the stairs to the dance floor, feeling increasingly detached from her body. “I was aware of just how many people were in the studio,” she noted, recalling the overwhelming sensation of performing in front of a live audience for the first time. “I swear I could see the whites of their eyes.”

As she prepared to perform a waltz to “This Nearly Was Mine” from the musical South Pacific, she felt physically unwell. “I couldn’t move and I felt dizzy,” she described. “My heart was beating so loudly I could hear it in my ears, and I was convinced the audience would be able to hear it, too.”

Just when she felt she might faint, Du Beke came to her rescue. Langsford described their dance as “an out-of-body experience,” where she felt as though he carried her around the dance floor “like a rag doll.” It was only later that she realized she had experienced a panic attack during the performance.

Langsford’s new book, published by Hodder & Stoughton, provides readers with deeper insights into her journey on Strictly Come Dancing and her personal growth throughout the process.

For those interested in her full story and the lessons she learned, Feeling Fabulous is now available for purchase.