TV

Strictly’s Debbie McGee reveals secret behind that incredible performance

You'll never guess

If you tuned into Strictly Come Dancing last Saturday you would have noticed how amazing Debbie McGee looked as she sashayed with her hunky partner Giovanni Pernice.

She stunned viewers with her Paso Doble dance, as things got pretty steamy between her and Giovanni.

Everyone was wondering how a 58-year-old can be so flexible! Well now she has revealed her secret.

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Debbie said that gardening is the main way she keeps fit, and it clearly works for her.

She told the Mirror: “Gardening keeps me trim, as does Pilates and yoga three to four times a week.”

She is the oldest contestant on the show but you wouldn’t have guessed it by the way she twirled around the dance floor and did the splits.

Although she didn’t come top of the leaderboard, she did an amazing job as she scored 30 points and she received heaps of praise.

Even Craig Revel Horwood gave her positive feedback!

He complimented her skills and said she “danced like a 20-year-old” and another one of the judges, Darcey Bussell, said she was “on fire”.

After her energetic performance she admitted she went to get a massage because she could feel the effects of weeks of rehearsals and the final dance on Saturday.

On the show she said: “My body is feeling that it was flung around last night.”

She added: “I was sent to the physio who gave my back a jolly good massage.”

It was also hard to miss that shock smooch as Debbie kissed Giovanni at the end of the routine, which was not planned.

“It was a little bit cheeky and naughty. I don’t think Giovanni has recovered yet,” she said.

Debbie is best known for her time as an assistant to magician husband Paul Daniels, who died last year.

Paul appeared on Strictly back in 2010 and was the second person to be voted off.

On Saturday Strictly well and truly beat its rival The X Factor by getting over four million viewers more than the hit ITV talent show.

The BBC One programme saw 15 new celebrities take to the dance floor for the first time with their partners, and was watched by an average of 9.3 million viewers.

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The bumper episode, which aired for just under two and a half hours, peaked at 10.2 million viewers and was the most-watched programme of the day.

Over on ITV, The X Factor – overlapping with Strictly for 45 minutes as it aired from 8pm until 9.15pm – was watched by an average of 4.8 million and a peak of six million, according to overnight data.

The figures for Simon Cowell’s singing programme include those watching the broadcast one hour later on ITV+1.


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor