EMMA Barton admitted she’ll be dancing for her late nan on Strictly.
The EastEnders actress has been partnered up with show stalwart Anton Du Beke, 53, but is nursing a secret heartache after her granny passed away this year.
EastEnders star Emma Barton has revealed she’ll be dancing for her late nan on Strictly[/caption]
She told Daily Star: “I lost my nan at the beginning of the year. She would have loved to see me on Strictly. She loved the show. I just wish she was alive.
“It’s the only bit of this experience that I’m upset about. She was really supportive of everything I’ve done.”
She added: “I will 100% be thinking about her when I’m dancing, of course. I will be doing it for her.
“You can see as a viewer how emotional Strictly can be. But I’m going to laugh a lot too. I’m going to make it all about the fun.”
The EastEnders actress has performed in theatre productions including Chicago during breaks from the BBC soap, where she plays Honey Mitchell.
And she admitted her theatre background WILL give her an advantage over her Strictly Come Dancing co-stars.
Speaking to The Sun Online ahead of the launch show, Emma, 42, said her stage experience will help her get to grips with the Strictly dance floor.
She said: “I think it probably will, the musicality side of it, counting. I’ve never done any of the styles that Strictly do before, so it is all going to be new.
“It was more jazz hands from my past. So yeah, the part and parcel of it – the costumes, the elegance, the music – I love that.”
“None of us want to get hurt – I bruise like a peach though! My bruises are ridiculous.”
Emma is the latest in a long line of EastEnders stars to take part in Strictly, and she revealed a number of her colleagues have given her advice on how to juggle her dance rehearsals with filming.
She said: “Jake [Wood] said ‘Just wiggle those hips girl’ and I’m like, ‘I’m not as good as you though! I don’t think everyone will enjoy watching that as much as when you did it!’”
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Despite her workload increasing dramatically by signing up for Strictly, Emma’s schedule at EastEnders isn’t letting up either.She said: “I’m still there, I’m still doing both.
“It’s lovely that Strictly’s just across the road, which is really handy. But they’ve done that a lot over the past few years, EastEnders look after us all very well, Strictly will as well.
“I’m not shy of working hard, so… I was not going to say no to this, I would have regretted it.”
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