Darcey Bussell may not be on Strictly Come Dancing any more, but she’s shown her friendship with Craig Revel Horwood has outlasted her stint on the panel.
The pair had a reunion earlier this week after the former Strictly judge went to support Craig his touring production of Annie The Musical arrived in Plymouth.
Craig and Darcey documented their time together on Instagram, with Darcey hailing Craig’s turn as Miss Hannigan as “fab-u-lous!”, in reference to him famous catchphrase.
Sharing pictures of them together, Darcey wrote: “Lovely to catch up with my old friend @craigrevel at @theatreroyalplymouth whilst he is here performing in @anniemusicaluk.
“Make sure you go and see the show – Craig is FAB U LOUS! Dx.”
Craig also posted a photo, writing: “What a total treat, getting to spend the day with the sorely missed @darceybussellofficial in #plymouth.”
Prima ballerina Darcey announced her exit from the BBC ballroom show after eight years back in April 2019, and has since been replaced by Motsi Mabuse on the panel, which now includes Craig, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke.
At the time, Darcey said she was leaving on good terms and not because of “any upset or disagreement”.
While she initially remained largely tight-lipped about Strictly – even dodging questions about it during an interview on Good Morning Britain – she later admitted she found her role on the show hard.
Speaking in 2021 on the Royal Academy of Dance podcast, Darcey said: “It was really hard because the producers on the show didn’t want me to be the ballet dancer and I was like ‘Well, sadly I am, and I think you chose me because I am the ballet dancer’.
“But they were convinced that the public were going to take that on board, but there you go, the public did take it on board and were happy to have me as a judge.
“I was always going to play myself, there was no question in it. However much I was convinced that to look like and be like the ballet dancer wasn’t the right thing. I was, like, ‘Well, sorry, you’re taking me as it is, this is how I look and this is how I’ll act.’”
Darcey continued: “It wasn’t the easiest thing for me, because I wanted to still be the dancer on that dance floor, on that stage.
“So to be a judge full-time like that was hard. Knowing that it’s live and having the ability to be quick and responsive was hard as well, because I like to think and take my time and give value.”
The new series of Strictly Come Dancing is due to kick off next month, with Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Les Dennis and Angela Rippon among those taking part. See the full line-up here.