Arlene Phillips was a member of Strictly Come Dancing's formidable judging panel for four years, but the former dancer and choreographer wasn't initially keen on the gig.
Arlene – who left the BBC series in 2008 – has since opened up about her Strictly journey, telling the Celebrity Search Engine podcast that she actually turned down a place on the panel three times, before eventually accepting.
And it turns out fans have former head judge Len Goodman to thank for that.
"I said no three times," she revealed. "I went to do this pilot, and Len Goodman was there. There was another kind of judge stand-in person, and there were some of the dancers we know – Anton [Du Beke] was there, Brendan [Cole] was there..."
The pilot was less of a Viennese Waltz and more of a Charleston, however, with Arlene admitting that the taping "felt like chaos".
Fortunately, a pact with Len changed her mind. "Len turned to me and he said, 'I don't know about this, are you going to do it?'," she explained.
"I said, 'I don't know, are you?' and he said, 'I'll do it if you do it!', and then we both agreed to do it."
Strictly Come Dancing's current judging panel includes original members Bruno Tonioli and Craig Revel Horwood, as well as Motsi Mabuse and head judge Shirley Ballas – who's already promising one of the best line-ups yet for 2021.
Strictly Come Dancing airs on BBC One. It's due to return later in 2021.
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