'Strictly Come Dancing' star Layton Williams suffered a tearful "wobble" backstage as he prepared to perform for the first time.
Layton Williams suffered a bit of a wobble backstage at Strictly Come Dancing
The 29-year-old 'Bad Education' star made his debut on the BBC talent show dancing a samba to Little Mix song 'Touch' and the actor has revealed nerves almost got the better of him just as he was about to walk out in front of the judges for his first dance.
He told TV Times magazine: "The first week when we were doing the sama, I had a bit of a wobble. I just saw my mum pop up on the screen and it just made me really emotional.
I thought: 'Oh my God, I think I'm going to cry'."
However, he credits his dance partner Nikita Kuzmin with helping him through. Layton added: "Nikita just grabbed my hand and we took a little breath, then we went on stage and did the dance."
The professional dancer added the pair now take a moment before every dance to hold hands and breathe together.
Nikita added: "We always just hold hands and kind of meditate together before each dance. That's been our thing so far - just connecting together and creating a calm little bubble between us."
The dancer previously admitted he's thrilled to be in a same-sex dance partnership with Layton on the show after watching his co-stars John Whaite and Johannes Radebe make it to the final two years ago.
He told Metro: "To be honest, it’s something that I’ve always wanted to do on the show, ever since I saw John and Johannes. "They were absolutely fabulous, an iconic partnership. "I was just like, I would like the same opportunity, and it’s been amazing so far. A dream come true!"
Nikita also previously defended his partner over criticism of his previous dance training and stage work - insisting performing on 'Strictly' is totally different to anything Layton has done before.
He told the Mirror newspaper: "Ballroom and Latin are completely different to anything Layton has done so far, the technique, posture and especially to coordination is completely different; he has a lot to learn and I can’t wait to teach him."
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