John Whaite and Johannes Radebe are currently blazing a trail in the Strictly Come Dancing ballroom as the first-ever male partnership, but Dr Ranj Singh has admitted he hoped to be the one to make history when he appeared on the show.
The This Morning medic has said he really wanted to be paired with a male professional when he took part in 2018.
In a forthcoming interview with HuffPost UK for our Back To The Ballroom series, Ranj said: “I would have loved to have danced with another guy. I really wanted them to pair me with another guy but it wasn’t quite the done thing then.
“I’m so glad it is now and I think that is amazing.”
Revealing who he would have loved to have danced with, Ranj said: “Gorka [Marquez] – he’s a cracking dancer and is the same height. Or Aljaž [Škorjanec] – he’s just so much fun and is the other half of Janette [Manrara].
“In rehearsals, especially during ballroom rehearsals, I used to get tips from him and he used to show me. I really struggled with ballroom and Aljaž is the ballroom king, so I did kind of get to dance with him a little bit when I was trying to learn. But it would have been amazing to dance together.”
Ranj was paired up with Janette Manrara on the 2018 series of Strictly, with the couple becoming the sixth to be eliminated.
The pair have forged a lasting friendship, and have continued to dance together since the series.
Ranj said: “At my 40th birthday, me and Janette did my Fireball routine and I fell over, which was very funny.
“I did my own West End show in the summer and Janette and I did a little routine there just for fun – we just can’t help it! Every time we’re together, because we’re still really good friends, we just can’t help but have a laugh and I’ll try and lift her and probably drop her.”
Last week’s Strictly Come Dancing saw John and Johannes finish second on the leaderboard after dazzling the judges with their stylish Tango.
While they are the show’s first all-male couple, last year’s series saw Nicola Adams and Katya Jones make history as the first same-sex couple.
Sadly though, the pair were forced to make an early exit from the competition when Katya tested positive for Covid.
The This Morning medic has said he really wanted to be paired with a male professional when he took part in 2018.
In a forthcoming interview with HuffPost UK for our Back To The Ballroom series, Ranj said: “I would have loved to have danced with another guy. I really wanted them to pair me with another guy but it wasn’t quite the done thing then.
“I’m so glad it is now and I think that is amazing.”
Revealing who he would have loved to have danced with, Ranj said: “Gorka [Marquez] – he’s a cracking dancer and is the same height. Or Aljaž [Škorjanec] – he’s just so much fun and is the other half of Janette [Manrara].
“In rehearsals, especially during ballroom rehearsals, I used to get tips from him and he used to show me. I really struggled with ballroom and Aljaž is the ballroom king, so I did kind of get to dance with him a little bit when I was trying to learn. But it would have been amazing to dance together.”
Ranj was paired up with Janette Manrara on the 2018 series of Strictly, with the couple becoming the sixth to be eliminated.
The pair have forged a lasting friendship, and have continued to dance together since the series.
Ranj said: “At my 40th birthday, me and Janette did my Fireball routine and I fell over, which was very funny.
“I did my own West End show in the summer and Janette and I did a little routine there just for fun – we just can’t help it! Every time we’re together, because we’re still really good friends, we just can’t help but have a laugh and I’ll try and lift her and probably drop her.”
Last week’s Strictly Come Dancing saw John and Johannes finish second on the leaderboard after dazzling the judges with their stylish Tango.
While they are the show’s first all-male couple, last year’s series saw Nicola Adams and Katya Jones make history as the first same-sex couple.
Sadly though, the pair were forced to make an early exit from the competition when Katya tested positive for Covid.
