Anton du Beke wants a "bendy" dance partner on 'Strictly Come Dancing'.

Anton du Beke

Anton du Beke

The 52-year-old professional dancer has been a mainstay on the BBC Latin and Ballroom dance competition since it began in 2004, and has said that after often being given the older and less flexible females to dance with, he thinks it would be "quite novelty" having a partner he didn't have to "pick up" at some stage in the show.

Speaking during an appearance on 'This Morning' alongside hosts Ruth Langsford - whom he was paired with for the 2017 series - and her husband Eamonn Holmes, Anton said: "They've all been ladies of which - I hate to speak about Ruth about this I'm sorry my love - I've enjoyed every single moment of everybody I've spent time with.

"I wouldn't mind a bendy one it would - with no disrespect to any of the ladies - I could do with a bendy one for a change and you know it would be quite novelty not to have to pick them up at some stage."

Ruth, 59, and Anton came in 9th place on the show's 15th series, and Eamonn, also 59, was keen to find out how the dancer coped with his spouse "flying off the handle or breaking down in tears".

Anton told him: "Oh we used to get one criticism per effort we would do a dance - I hope you don't mind me saying this - we would just sort of bubbling on the brink of tears or not tears.

"You could see it and you would do a dance and rehearsal and then finish the dance and I'd go 'Now listen that was the arms weren't quite right'

"I could just see her bubbling up tears and I go but the legs were terrific and then they'd settle down and then we'd have another go."