Strictly's Dan Walker Says Daughter Had Sweetest Reaction To First Dance: 'One Of The Highlights Of My Life'

"The dance was great... but that was what it was all about."

Strictly Come Dancing contestant Dan Walker has revealed his teenage daughter’s adorable reaction to his first performance on the show at the weekend.

The BBC Breakfast presenter took to the floor with professional partner Nadiya Bychkova to perform a Quickstep to Everybody Needs Somebody To Love from The Blues Brothers.

The pair impressed the judges and were awarded 24 points out of a possible 40, sitting in joint fourth place on the leaderboard.

Speaking on Monday’s edition of BBC Breakfast, Dan described how seeing his daughter in tears in the audience was “one of the highlights of my entire life”.

Nadiya Bychkova and Dan Walker on the Strictly floor
Nadiya Bychkova and Dan Walker on the Strictly floor
Guy Levy/BBC

He recalled: “I sat down on the chair with Nadiya and she sort of said, ‘Well done. You did really well’.

“And then I looked across to where Tess normally is, that’s where my wife and my daughter were sitting, and Suzi had tears pouring out of her eyes. Like, proper tears of joy, and she gave me this lovely little wave to say, ‘Well done, dad’.

“That was one of the highlights of my entire life because she absolutely loved it and she’s the one – and her brother and sister – that’s why I decided to do the programme because they were desperate to watch it.”

“So, that for me was perfect. The dance was great, I really enjoyed it, but that was what it was all about,” Dan added.

Dan and Nadiya scored 24/40 for their first dance
Dan and Nadiya scored 24/40 for their first dance
Ray Burmiston/BBC

Dan’s Strictly journey didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts, after he was forced to miss some rehearsals following an accident.

The presenter was taken to A&E after walking into a glass door at a hotel, returning to hospital when he was still feeling wobbly.

Saturday’s first live show of the series saw AJ Odudu and partner Kai Widdrington top the leaderboard after showcasing an impressive Jive.

Since then, Tom Fletcher and his partner Amy Dowden have been forced to withdraw from the second live show after they both tested positive for Covid-19.

Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturday at 6.45pm on BBC One, with BBC Breakfast airing daily from 6am.

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