Good Morning Britain's Ben Shephard explains ruling out Strictly stint

"Now’s not the right time. It’s all-consuming."

By George Lewis

4 Dec 2022

ben shephard arriving at the pride of birmingham awards 2022 wearing a deep purple suit and pale blue tie

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Good Morning Britain host Ben Shephard has revealed why he has never appeared on Strictly Come Dancing.

The television presenter has long been tipped to appear on the BBC series, with his background in contemporary dance seemingly a good match for a potential appearance.

This, however, has never materialised, with Shephard revealing to The Mirror that he wouldn't want to impact his marriage by appearing on the show.

ben shepard and susanna reid at the pride of britain awards 2022

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“I really do think it would be a lot for our relationship. It would be intense,” he said. “Everybody’s got an opinion about your rumba or your salsa. I did the salsa with Shirley Ballas on The One Show the other week and the amount of messages I got was really overwhelming.”

Though he seemingly ruled out an appearance for now, Shephard did reference some of his colleagues - Kate Garraway, Susanna Reid, Robert Rinder - who have taken part, hinting that he could change his mind in the future.

“Lots of my colleagues have done it and absolutely loved it. And I’ve worked with Helen [Skelton] over the years - she’s absolute dynamite and an incredible broadcaster and an amazing mum,” he said.

ben shephard attends a charity event day wearing a white shirt and deep purple suit

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“I’ve loved watching her do something as life-affirming as dancing - I know the joy you get from dancing and the endorphins - so I’ll never say never but now’s not the right time. It’s all-consuming,” he continued.

Shephard still assessed his prospective chances should he take part, saying his dance background wouldn’t necessarily help him.

“Everyone’s got this idea that because I’ve got a dance degree I’d be good on Strictly but I’d be rubbish,” he said. “I did contemporary dance - standing at a bar and rolling around on the floor. It’s not charging across the dancefloor doing a quick step.”

The current series of Strictly Come Dancing is approaching its conclusion, with the semi-final taking place next weekend.

For one week only, Strictly Come Dancing airs at 7.15pm on Sunday, December 11, with the results show airing on Monday, December 12. Spin-off show Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows also stream on BBC iPlayer.

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