Strictly Come Dancing’s Will Mellor reveals touching pre-show ritual for his late dad
STRICTLY Come Dancing Will Mellor revealed he had a touching pre-show ritual for his late dad.
The Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps star, 46, lost his father Bill during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Will – who dedicated an emotional Waltz to his father – shared how he has a “moment” with his late dad in his dressing room before every routine.
Former contestant Richie Anderson appeared on It Takes Two on Friday’s instalment as he quizzed the remaining celebrities on their show rituals.
Will told him: “My dad used to say I’ve got a head full of magic, and that’s because I’m always looking ‘Oh what’s that, who’s over there’.
“So, I have to take myself away for a little bit and just focus my head.
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“Me and Nancy have a little moment together and go ‘Right we’ve got each other, we’ve got this, lets do it.
“And I’ve got my dad’s ring on so I always have a little moment. ‘Right dad here we go lets go and smash it’.”
Will previously revealed that he was inspired to take part in the BBC competition by his dad’s death.
He said: “I have been asked [to do the show] before and it scared me.
“Doing anything like this scared me. I was worried it would have a negative impact on my acting career and then I lost my dad in 2020 and my mindset completely changed.
“I just thought you’ve got to grab life. You’ve got to do things and I’m going to say yes to more stuff and create memories and that really is what life’s about. And you realise that when you start losing people and that this is what life’s about.”
Bill Mellor tragically passed away in April 2020, just weeks after being diagnosed with cancer, during the height of the pandemic.
Will was unable to be with his grieving family due to restrictions – leaving the actor tearing up as he spoke about it to host Alex Jones.
Earlier this year, Will opened up about his heartache on The One Show.
Wiping his eye, Will told host Alex Jones: “It was a really hard time…it was a horrible time. He was my hero, there was never going to be a good time.
“I realised at that time if I’m going through this, and it really hit me hard, there must be a lot of people out there…Talking does help.”
He went on to encourage other men to open up about their feelings – saying it helped him move on after the loss of his father.