Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
Strictly Come Dancing's next disabled signing could well be a wheelchair user as one of their dancers already has significant experience teaching this.
Pro dancer Gorka Marquez told Express.co.uk in July he has experience teaching people in wheelchairs to dance as it is "very big in Spain".
"I have experience with [dancing with wheelchair dancers]. It's very big in Spain," he revealed. "My teacher [in Spain] used to teach it.
"She was trained to do the dances and we used to do our dance competitions. We used to have wheelchair competitions in Spain. In fact there is a proper championship and everything for wheelchair dancing. And it's always like a person in a wheelchair with then another person dancing together. It is quite impressive," he enthused.
The 34-year-old father of two, who was eliminated fifth in this year's show with his celebrity partner Dr. Punam Krishan, has also seen first hand how it could work within the confimes of Strictly Come Dancing when he was a guest judge on the Spanish version of the show earlier this year.
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Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez has experience dancing with wheelchair users (Image: ITV)"This year I was judging Dancing With The Stars in Spain, and every week they used to bring a guest, which is like a celebrity who just comes in and dances one time.
"They brought a Paralympian - I think he's a tennis player - and he danced a pasa doble with this girl and he was incredible," Gorka recalled.
His Strictly colleague Karen Hauer also agreed a wheelchair user would be an asset to the show. "I think it'd be it'd be great. The inclusion of anyone and everyone have an opportunity to be on that dance floor with us [is fantastic] and it would it would be a beautiful thing," she said as she and Gorka prepared for their Speakeasy Tour which begins in February next year.
Gorka's previous experience would make him an obvious choice to parther with a celebrity wheelchair user.
One name that could be in the frame is EastEnders star Kitty Castledine, who plays Penny Branning in the soap. Her mother, A Place In The Sun presenter Lucy Alexander, revealed exclusively to Express.co.uk in June she would love to see her daughter on the show.
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"The first wheelchair dancer on the show. She'd be amazing and why not! She is so graceful," she gushed about the 22-year-old.
The actress, became wheelchair-bound at the age of seven after developing transverse myelitis, a rare disease of the central nervous system.
On Saturday night (December 14) blind comedian Chris McCausland became the second disabled contestant to win the BBC Saturday night flagship show as he and pro partner Dianne Buswel lifted the glitterball trophy.
He followed in the footsteps of 2021 champion, deaf actress Rose Ayling-Ellis who won partnered with Giovanni Pernice.
In recent years Strictly has had several contestants with a disability including amputee sprinter Jonnie Peacock and athelete Lauren Steadman.
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
Strictly Come Dancing's Gorka Marquez preparing to partner show's next disabled contestant
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