{"id":162842,"date":"2025-09-27T02:36:24","date_gmt":"2025-09-27T02:36:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/162842\/"},"modified":"2025-09-27T02:36:24","modified_gmt":"2025-09-27T02:36:24","slug":"dianne-buswell-not-silly-when-competing-while-pregnant-with-first-strictly-baby-says-stefan-dennis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/162842\/","title":{"rendered":"Dianne Buswell ‘not silly’ when competing while pregnant with first Strictly baby says Stefan Dennis"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Neighbours star says they will give 100%, but judges and public must remember that fellow Aussie Dianne will have ‘limitations’ and that her welfare is ‘paramount’<\/p>\n

19:00, 26 Sep 2025Updated 22:05, 26 Sep 2025<\/p>\n

\"StefanStefan says he and Dianne have got the foxtrot sorted for week one of the live shows(Image: INSTAGRAM)<\/p>\n

Having signed up for Strictly Come Dancing<\/a> from the other side of the world<\/a>, Stefan Dennis was hit by two surprises when he arrived in the UK to start training. First off the actor, much-loved by millions as cold-hearted and ruthless Neighbours businessman Paul Robinson<\/a>, was thrilled to discover he\u2019d been paired with a fellow Aussie, in the shape of Dianne Buswell<\/a>.<\/p>\n

And then came the second whammy – Dianne revealed she was about to become the first pro dancer to compete in the BBC<\/a> competition while pregnant.<\/p>\n

Stefan<\/a>, who has three kids of his own with wife of 25 years Gail, says he\u2019s thrilled for his new best mate, and will do everything in his power to help ensure it all goes smoothly for her.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Strictly live shows to launch with ‘biggest ever’ performance from the judges<\/a>READ MORE: Strictly’s Thomas Skinner causing huge BBC headache ‘There’s nothing they can do’<\/a>\"StefanIn between training sessioins, the pair are enjoying their cake breaks(Image: INSTAGRAM)\"StefanBack in the early days of Paul Robinson on Ramsay Street in 1988(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cBless her, she’s the usual, she’s radiant and lovely,\u201d he declares about the reigning champ, who lifted the glitterball trophy last year with partner Chris McCausland. \u201cShe\u2019s just a lovely person. You can’t help but like her. And now on top of this, she’s having a baby and it’s brilliant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stefan, who is this year\u2019s oldest contestant at 66, says it\u2019s entirely up to Dianne to decide what she is comfortable with in terms of the routines and training schedule. \u201cShe\u2019s not silly when it comes to her body and what she can do and what she can’t do,\u201d he reasons. And she’s also got massive medical support from the BBC. Her welfare and the baby’s welfare are obviously paramount – that\u2019s the top thing. But she’s very confident that she’s going to be able to do this and I trust her confidence.”<\/p>\n

He says that one of the show\u2019s welfare producers came to gently break the news to him in his dressing room. \u201cShe said, \u2018Oh, Stef, we’ve got some news.\u2019 And I went, \u2018Oh, my God – have I been voted out already? It hasn’t even started.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

So when they told him the happy news he was actually relieved. \u201cKnowing Dianne the way I know her now, I think she’s going to be a brilliant parent. I think that baby is going to be very, very fortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dianne, 36, met her partner Joe Sugg<\/a> while partnered with him on the show back in 2018 (they made it to the final), so their first child really does feel like a Strictly baby.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s like a fairy story, isn’t it?\u201d Stefan marvels. Of course it would be perfectly understandable for him to feel nervous of his partner being a mum-to-be given that he\u2019s a total amateu, but he says they\u2019ll just adapt as they go along.<\/p>\n

\"StefanStefan with his wife Gail, a dancer, whom he hopes to impress with his new moves(Image: Getty Images)\"StefanDianne and Stefan are hoping to become the Aussie dream team on Strictly(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC\/Ray Burmiston)<\/p>\n

\u201cI will still put in 100% and I know Dianne’s going to put in 100% because that’s who she is. But yes, as she becomes more pregnant, let\u2019s call it, I think things will become more appropriate for her welfare and the baby’s welfare.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laughing that he\u2019s unlikely to be whirling her around his head any time soon, he says: \u201cI hope the judges, the audience and the public understand that she will have limitations. But I also know that, within her realm, she will also do her absolute best and push what she can, without any worry at all. At the end of the day, she’s an athlete. I think we\u2019ll be just fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

They\u2019ll kick off tomorrow night with a foxtrot, which he checked out on YouTube<\/a>. \u201cIt looked nice and gentle and fairly easy. No way! It\u2019s not at all. But you are talking to somebody who’s never danced before in their life, so everything’s going to be hard for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He thinks that pairing him with Dianne was a stroke of genius, because they are both enjoying talking about their roots Down Under. \u201cTo me, yes, it seemed like a bit of a no-brainer. We just clicked and got on straight away, obviously because we had something in common.\u201d<\/p>\n

That doesn\u2019t mean, however, that she\u2019s giving him an easy ride. \u201cDianne gets a little cross with me sometimes, well, she gets frustrated, which is understandable,\u201d he admits. \u201cI would too. She\u2019s got the patience of a saint, which I kind of need.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s testament to his soap popularity that there are people all over social media declaring that they will vote for him regardless of how he actually performs. \u201cEven if I’m crap, I know,\u201d he chuckles.<\/p>\n

\"StefanDuring training they are also making videos for fun, including one where he mimes to his 1989 hit Don’t It Make You Feel Good(Image: INSTAGRAM)<\/p>\n

The actor has watched back some of the dances that Dianne did with Chris last year, for inspiration. \u201cThey were just phenomenal,\u201d he sighs. \u201cFor her to be able to train Chris, when he has no sight, I think that gave me huge encouragement. I thought if they can do that and if he can achieve that, then I’ve got no excuses for anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

He says Dianne was very excited when he finally got the foxtrot right. \u201cI think we’ve kind of got it almost nailed,\u201d he ventures. \u201cPut it this way, she said it wouldn’t be embarrassing now. So she was a bit worried at one point.\u201d<\/p>\n

He\u2019s finding – like many before him – that one of the hardest things is remembering the steps. \u201cI have a shocking memory. It’s bizarre for a person who can remember an entire script. But I am absolutely shocking at remembering song lyrics and so my greatest fear is not remembering the dance steps. If I go the wrong way, it can become a train wreck, and that’s the last thing either of us want.\u201d<\/p>\n

A fan of adrenaline sports, he\u2019s hoping that his bones won\u2019t let him down. \u201cI’m the oldest in the competition but I’ve always been a relatively fit and active person all my life. I just think it’s important – I don’t want to turn into a crotchety old guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

His aim, in signing up for the only reality show he\u2019s ever been interested in, is to be able to dance with his wife – a performer and trained dancer – when he gets back home. \u201cI’ve never been able to take her dancing, like proper dancing, so I thought that would be a really nice thing to be able to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stefan says being away from the family for up to four months is already proving tough after just a few weeks. \u201cI think this is the longest time I’ve been away from Gail, and certainly the kids, since 1997.\u201d<\/p>\n

But at least he\u2019s got a new bunch of pals, in the form of all the other contestants. \u201cEverybody\u2019s really lovely. The only person I knew before was Ross King, but now they’re all friends. And that’s great. Three weeks and we’re all buddies.\u201d<\/p>\n

And does he – at this early stage – already have his eye on the prize? “I think we all do,\u201d he confesses, before laughing: \u201cI’m the actor from the other side of the world who’s got two left feet! Just to be here and doing it, to be part of it is quite phenomenal.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s clear that he\u2019s absolutely determined to give Strictly his very best shot. \u201cWe’re doing it because the audience out there absolutely adores the show and we want to entertain them,\u201d he explains, saying the plan is to take it week by week.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I get to three weeks, I’ll be ecstatic. If I get to five weeks, I’ll be over the moon. If I get to six weeks, I’ll just be, \u2018Oh my God, this is unbelievable.\u2019\u201d Strewth mate, good on ya!<\/p>\n

– Strictly Come Dancing, Saturday, BBC1<\/a>, 6.55pm<\/p>\n

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