‘DANCE IS SOMETHING I NEED IN MY LIFE'

TV STAR ORE ODUBA ON BEING A NEW DAD-OF-TWO, HOW HIS WIFE IS HOLDING THE FORT WHILE HE'S ON TOUR, AND WHY STRICTLY'S CHANGED HIS LIFE FOREVER

- SAMUEL MCMANUS-MAXWELL

It’s been five years since Ore Oduba lifted Strictly Come Dancing’s Glitterball trophy and, following the hit BBC show’s famous mantra to the letter, the 36-year-old has kept dancing. “Dance is something I love that I didn’t know I needed in my life,” he tells us when we catch up over the phone. “Winning Strictly really was a light-bulb moment for me. It kind of unlocked this part of me I’d kept hidden away,” he adds.

Ore has also revealed that dance offered him a mental health lifeline during the pandemic. “I learnt tap dancing over lockdown. Taking up another form of dance really drives me, as I am a very routine-driven person,” he says.

It’s just three months since his wife Portia gave birth to daughter Genie – who joins big brother Roman, three – and Ore is clearly still on cloud nine. “I love having a girl,” he gushes when we talk about the little one. “We knew we’d be happy with whoever arrived, but now we have a girl I cannot count the gifts, the amount of clothes, just bags of stuff,” he laughs.