4:45pm Friday 24th February 2006
By Tony Flood
I never thought I'd come into the same category as camp comedian Julian Clary or super-fit rugby player Martin Offiah, but apparently I do.
New Zealand dance champion Erin Boag, who taught them to tango and a whole lot more in BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, got to grips with me last week when I went along with my wife Heather to her beginners' class at Kingston Studio.
I felt sure that perfectionist Erin would give me an ear-bashing when she found I not only had two left feet but also possessed no sense of rhythm. After all, she wasn't nicknamed Miss Whiplash for nothing!
But Erin, a former children's nanny, assured me: "I have never lost my temper with a pupil. With you, I need to use gentle persuasion first like I did with Julian Clary. He was terrible at the start, but it would have been unfair to push him very hard, as I did my last celebrity partner Colin Jackson, because he was no athlete.
"If you don't respond, then I'll adopt the assertive approach I used with Martin Offiah, which caused me to be dubbed Miss Whiplash and Officer Boag."
Fortunately, my wife and I, who were among 30 pupils to turn up for Erin's first Monday class, did manage to negotiate the basic steps of the cha-cha-cha and the social foxtrot but not necessarily in the right order or always in the same direction!
The delightful 30-year-old Miss Boag, who lives in Cheam after previously residing in Surbiton and Sutton during her nine years in this country, has a big fan following. And many felt she and Jackson were robbed in the last series of Strictly Come Dancing when they came second to Darren Gough and Lilia Kopylova.
The judges slated Erin and the champion Welsh hurdler for dancing with mannequins instead of each other in the show dance section. Although marks were not given for this, their damaging comments probably influenced thousands of viewers who were still voting.
But Erin said: "I don't regret it I took a risk as I felt people wanted to see something different. And for Colin to be able to dance on his own to that standard was great.
"Perhaps the adverse comments did influence the viewers, but Darren and Lilia already had a big lead so I'll never know if it made any difference to the outcome.
"It had ended in a tie break, with Colin and I getting four points (two from the judges and two from the viewers), Darren four (one and three) and Zoe Ball four (three and one). But the viewers' mark decided the outcome.
"The encouraging thing is I've now finished fourth, third and second. The competitors know more about dancing than some of the judges, but they are qualified for this competition as it is also about choreography and presentation."
Erin and her professional dance partner Anton du Beke are now choreographing new river dance show Simply Ballroom Dancing, starring Lionel Blair. Anton, a heartthrob with the ladies, and Erin's boyfriend, Peter, a 42-year-old business consultant, are the two men she spends most time with and they look alike!
She reveals: "Anton has huge charisma and women throw themselves at him. But he is not Mr Charming when we're training we have our disagreements because we are so commited."
Erin intends to teach her class of beginners seven dances in six weeks, but she may find it easier to win the next series of Strictly Come Dancing than get me to remember the basics.
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