First published on Mon 21 Dec 2020 11.50 EST
Dance schools are expecting to see an increase in men of a certain age signing up for lessons after the soul-stirring Strictly success of Bill Bailey.
The comedian, 55, was named winner of the show on Saturday, triumphing over contestants who were less than half his age.
On Monday, Bailey said he hoped his example would inspire men. “I think a lot of blokes of my vintage do feel self-conscious on the dancefloor,” he said in an interview on ITV’s Lorraine presented by his fellow contestant Ranvir Singh.
“We are always aware of that term ‘dad dancers’ and that makes people feel a bit nervous and, ‘Oh, I don’t want to be that guy shuffling around at the end of the night’. My hope is that me having this success will mean more men of my age might consider taking up a dance class, or maybe just getting fitter, or whatever.”