Natasha Kaplinsky has claimed she was so desperate to get out of Strictly Come Dancing after signing up that she considered breaking her own ankle.
The newsreader was one of eight celebrities who appeared in the very first series of Strictly back in 2004, alongside stars like Lesley Garrett, David Dickinson and Claire Sweeney.
While Natasha proved popular with the public, and eventually went on to win the show, it seems that getting her to agree to take part was no easy feat.
In an “oral history of Strictly Come Dancing” piece published in The Guardian on Saturday, former executive producer Karen Smith recalled: “Natasha Kaplinsky did not want to do it.
“We tried – it was a no. The head of entertainment tried – it was a no. The heads of news and BBC One tried to talk her around.
“I used to send people – we’re in the same building – to show her pictures of the dresses, but she was like: ‘Karen, you’re just making it worse! You’re making me more nervous!’.”
Natasha explained: “As a woman in journalism and having fought quite hard to be taken seriously as a journalist, I felt like that really wasn’t what I needed – to suddenly get into a very short sparkly dress on a Saturday night and start dancing and ask for people to vote for me.
“I didn’t want to take what I felt was a step backwards. Ultimately, I was persuaded. Once I signed the contract, I had a terrible rush of anxiety and tried to break my ankle by falling off every street corner. I was trying to think of every possible reason not to do it.”
She noted: “I guess it didn’t take long for me to completely fall in love with dancing. I loved every single minute in that rehearsal studio.”
“My biggest regret is that I was so concerned about how it would be perceived that I didn’t allow myself to enjoy it as much as I should have done,” she added.
Natasha was partnered with former Strictly professional Brendan Cole, becoming the first pair to lift the Glitterball trophy.
They were also the first duo to be associated with the so-called “Strictly curse”, as they both split from their partners shortly after the series ended.
Both Natasha and Brendan having always maintained there was never anything romantic between them.
Read The Guardian’s full “oral history of Strictly Come Dancing” here.