Claudia Winkleman still gets “so nervous” before a ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ live show.
Claudia Winkleman
The 48-year-old presenter has been co-hosting the BBC Latin and ballroom dance competition since 2004, but has admitted she still suffers from pre-show jitters because she worries she will let the “magical” ‘Strictly’ team down.
She said: "If you ever see Tess doing the show wearing something with a big sleeve, it is because I have hurt her arm where I have squeezed it because I am so nervous.
“I can’t do that right now, but I do get really scared.
“Not because I think I am doing anything important – I am not in scrubs holding a scalpel – it is just because I don’t want to let this magical team, which is what they are, down.
“In live TV, we are tiny cogs and if you go off-piste and talk too long then you mess it up for everybody.”
Claudia even confessed to losing sleep the night before the BBC series is set to go live.
She added to the Sunday People newspaper: "I just want to be obedient. Being obedient at work, not at life, is a good thing. So I never really sleep the night before ‘Strictly’.”
On top of her work on ‘Strictly’, Claudia currently hosts a BBC Radio Two show, and in February 2021, she will take over the coveted Saturday morning show on the radio station, following the departure of Graham Norton.
She recently said of her new slot: "I’m not often speechless but the chance to be with the wonderful Radio 2 listeners every Saturday has left me, quite frankly, gobsmacked. I hope my voice comes back in time for the first show as I can no longer simply rely on a fake tan and a fringe. There’s nobody I’d rather be with at the weekend, it’s a privilege and an honour."
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