Johnny Ball swapped TV presenting for his dancing shoes to join the 2012Ā Strictly Come DancingĀ line-up. Sadly for Johnny it wasnāt meant to be and he found himself leaving the competition following Sunday nightās dance-off against Richard Arnold.
Despite showing promise and having to contend with a changing professional partners, Johnny put in a valiant effort and proved that age is nothing but a number.
We caught up with Johnny to talk about hisĀ Strictlyexperience, find out how he feels about being the first celebrity to leave the show, and to find out what he plans to do next.
How are you finding life after āStrictlyā?
Iām going to a wedding this weekend. Next weekend Iām going to Venice for the weekend so there is life afterĀ Strictly(laughs).
Letās talk about your time on āStrictlyā. Why did you get involved with the show in the first place?
They asked me. We were in Portugal and I got an email asking if Iād like to do it. My wife and I went quickly to the bar for a stiff drink because I couldnāt really believe. I thought āyou canāt turn this down really can you?ā We looked at it this way; if they waited another 10 years before they asked me then I would be too old so we took it on.
Did you get any advice from your daughter Zoe following her successful appearance on the show a few years ago?
The first thing I did was say ādoes Zoe know?ā and they said ānoā so I said ācan you keep quietā and they asked āwhy?ā.Ā I said to them āIād hate it if anyone ever thought there was a meeting at the BBC and they were scratching their heads for who to get forĀ StrictlyĀ and my daughter said why donāt you get my dad?ā I was so worried about that so I said donāt tell her. Zoe didnāt actually know until two days before when it was leaked in the press that I was going to be one of the people.
How did she react?
āOH MY GODā as young people say these days. She thought it was fabulous and she was absolutely wonderful. She was really gutted when I went out so early.
Nobody wants to be the first person to leave the show. How do you feel about that?
I have to be honest and say this isnāt a gripe itās just the facts. All the cards seemed to fall against me from my first partner being injured to taking a while to get me a second partner. I only had two and a half days with her (Iveta) and then in the studio they asked if we could change the first part of our dance which was 25% of it. We had two 2 hour sessions to redo the first section of my routine and all the other couples had a full three weeks.Ā It was difficult. We didnāt score well in the first one and the second one was alright but we just didnāt hit it. We were four off the bottom , including the awful scores we got in the first one, and we would have been half way up if weād got the same score in the first week as the second week. I thought weād be safe and it was such a shock when we found out we were in the bottom two, it really was.
Do you have any regrets now youāre out of the show? Is there anything you wish you could have done?
No. Itās the way it happens and itās the way it fell. I remember the judges saying in the last one āfor content aloneā and I realise now what they meant. I was speaking to a couple of the professionals afterwards and they said youāll always find that a Latin scores better in a dance-off than a Ballroom because of the content. It really seemed that every card we turned up really wasnāt in my favour. It was such a sadness. People from all over have been coming up to me and saying āyou were robbedā and āyou did ever so wellā. Someone has to go though and thatās just how it goes. Itās not a competition between you and the other celebrities because we are all rooting for each other. SomeĀ people have said that they should have taken into consideration that Iām older but they canāt do that. The judges have to judge what they can see; thatās all they can judge on. They judge the dance before them at that moment and they were absolutely fair and lovely. They didnāt look happy when they voted me out (laughs).
The judges gave you quite encouraging comments on the show last weekend saying you were getting betterā¦
That makes it more the pity that I didnāt get chance to carry on for another couple of weeks. I didnāt wear one sequin, have one spray tan or wear an open-neck shirt. If Iād survived this week I would have been coming in on a Harley Davidson in full leathers probably with a greasy wig singingĀ Born To Be Wild. The British public have sadly deprived themselves of that by voting me out (laughs).
As you mentioned your original partner Aliona was injured during rehearsals. How difficult was it to change partners and have to relearn everything?
I even hired a little gym across the road and my wife took me through some practice in the interim because I knew I was losing time. It was alright. It didnāt worry me. I just knew that I had to make an effortĀ to patch it up and Ian (Waite) was very good but I had to teach him to dance backwards because fellas donāt learn to dance backwards you see (laughs).
You seemed to get on really well with your replacement dance partner Iveta. What was she like to work with?
I got on well with everybody. The BBC have a wonderful programme here where everybody gets on and is supportive of each other. Itās just lovely. Iveta is gorgeous and absolutely wonderful. Sheās so understanding and a great teacher, so patient, diligent and aware. Sheās so good. Her pedigree is enormous ā twice world champion, five times American champion, four times American classic and showdance championā¦sheās just phenomenal. I think it would be silly if they didnāt offer her the series next year if thereās room because sheād be such an asset. The public would love her.
What have you got planned for the next few weeks?
Well Iām contracted toĀ StrictlyĀ until Christmas ā we all are. The BBC might want me to come back if all the other dancers get struck down with flu or something. It might happen, you never know (laughs). Iām back for the Christmas special and whatever they want me to do I will do. Last night we were out at a theatre do and Vincent was there with his wife. I took Iveta because it was a new dance show in London, which she enjoyed very much. She met some of the choreographers and producers. Ā Iām still in touch with dance.
Do you want to continue learning to dance?
No. No I really donātĀ just want to do it for a hobby. If Iām ever in New York Iāll go to Ivetaās studio on 5thĀ Avenue and Iām sure sheād give me a welcome and another fewĀ lessons. Iām sure at some time Iāll go to New York and see her.
Who are you tipping to win this year?
Well Iām hardly tipping anyone to lose really. If Iām honest I think Daniās coming on. Of the fellas I think Louis is very strong. The lovely thing about Louis is that heās never had a public persona and the rest of us have had because of the things weāve done. Louis is coming out slower but heās going to be a lovely, lovely personality on television. Heās so warming to it and he really is a talented lad. I can imagine him going a long way. Lisa Riley ā if she dances like sheās danced the viewers are going to vote her so high itāll be very difficult to knock her off that perch. Considering that she isnāt the ideal shape for a dancer but good heavens her energy, ability, timing and skill are there in abundance. Sheās going to do very well.
She surprised everybody didnāt she?
Absolutely and itās lovely. Some of the others who havenāt done too well so far will start gaining now. Youāll see theyāll get better and better. A lot of the people youāre not expecting to go a long way will come out of the woodwork and do well.
Itās going to be a good seriesā¦
Fabulous!
āStrictly Come Dancingā continues on Saturday night at 6.30pm on BBC One.Ā