'Strictly Come Dancing' star Ugo Monye dedicated his first dance to his late father.
Ugo Monye
The 38-year-old former rugby union player performed the Samba with partner Oti Mabuse during the first night of the competition on Saturday (25.09.21) before leaving the judges and audience in shock as he revealed he had attended his father's funeral just hours before.
Ugo's beloved father died just a few weeks ago from prostate cancer and he told co-presenter Claudia Winkleman: "My dad passed away a couple of weeks ago [from] prostate cancer, we had his funeral this morning. During the funeral they spoke about today being a day of celebration and that’s exactly how today felt, there’s no better way of celebrating than by dancing, so tonight feels really special."
Although he only scored 18 out of 40, Ugo impressed judge Shirley Ballas with his moves, as she said: "You’ve got all the gear, my dear!
"There’s not a part of your body that doesn’t want to move, even if it’s not supposed to, it wants to. You had the volta going the opposite way but you reinvented the volta. You make me feel good baby!"
Speaking previously about his reasons for taking part in the BBC show, he said: “My two beautiful daughters never had a chance to see me on the rugby pitch, so to know they can watch me waltzing and twirling every week is really special to me. I love an outfit at the best of times, so bring on the sequins."
Tagged in Claudia Winkleman