Interview with Darren Harriott for The Real Dirty Dancing

17 February 2022

Interview with Darren Harriott for The Real Dirty Dancing

Articles using this interview must credit The Real Dirty Dancing starts Monday 21st February at 9pm on E4 and All 4
 

Why did you want to be a part of the Real Dirty Dancing?

I just wanted to challenge myself. I'm not really a dancer, especially this kind of dance. I felt like it might be something a bit different. Sometimes you’ve just got to test yourself with something that's out of your comfort zone. I do comedy which, to 90% of the world, is the most intimidating and scariest thing you could ever do. I'm like, "No. The merengue, it's pretty bad. That's pretty nerve wracking for me." So I just thought I'd give it a go. I really enjoyed it. It was really fun. I have a lot of respect for the dancers. Since finishing this show, I've even watched Strictly. I was sat there watching it like, "Eh, that form is a little off." I'm watching it like I'm some pro!

Are we going to see you on Strictly next then?

Yeah! Whenever they do the movie night or whatever, I'm definitely doing Dirty Dancing. And I'll tell you one thing, I'm going to nail it! I'm nailing all the moves.

So if you're going to be on Strictly, who would you want as a partner?

Oh, what partner would I want? You know who my favourite dancer is on Strictly? My favourite dancer is Johannes. I think he's the best. I think he's better than everyone. I think he's great. But I guess I probably couldn't have him. But I would demand it. Me and Johannes. That's what it is. I met him in real life before I watched Strictly. I was like, "This guy's hips are like a snake." He just walks in and he's like jelly. So yeah, him, or I think I want somebody who would work me because I'm a worker. You give me steps, I'll do it. So, maybe a Katya or I quite like Nancy, because she's quite stern about things as well.

So when you watched the movie, who did you fancy?

I mean, I liked all of them! I think for me, I felt really sorry for Penny. I felt like she had a bloody raw deal, did our Penny. But I felt like her dancing was great. I liked the evolution of Baby from this kind of shy girl to this pro at the end.

Can you relate to Johnny in any way?

Yeah, I could relate to Johnny. Incredibly handsome, poor guy who's not too smart, but he has a bit of a talent. I ain't too smart but I can do comedy, and he's the same. He's like, "I'm nothing. I'm always going to be nothing." But you know what you can do, mate? You can dance and you can wear a leather jacket. That's what you can do. Dance, wear a leather jacket, and a vest as well. You really pull that off. And a nice quiff.

You were thrown in the deep end on day one and had to show off your dirty dancing skills, what was that like?

It was unlike anything I've ever done in my career so far. It was terrifying! I mean, if there's one part of this thing I'm never watching ever, it's that. It was just awkward and uncomfortable because most of us had never met each other before. It was just like, "Oh hello, Saffron. Anyway, put your leg here, love." It was a fun way to get us all going, I guess. It was a fun way to open the show and break out of our comfort zones. I think for some people they had done similar-ish dancing in the past on various shows like Strictly and all that. Whereas the likes of me and Bobby had never done that, not even in the club. In the club, I am full up against the wall, holding a gin and tonic, sort of nodding my head like, "Yeah, I feel the song." That's more my comfort zone. So I'll never forget that. I can honestly say that moment where they're like, "You're all going to have to grind on each other in front of everyone," was probably the scariest thing ever.

Was it awkward getting so up close and personal with the professional dancers?

You know what? I didn't find it that awkward with the professional because I just looked at it and went, “Right Darren, you're a comedian. You can act. It's just acting. So, just do what they do." It took me a while to get used to the eye contact because I don't even make eye contact with my mum. So, the idea of having to make eye contact with a stranger all lovingly is mental.

How did you make sure there was chemistry?

I don't know, to be honest with you! I mean, I just went into acting mode for a lot of it and just sort of focused on, "You're acting. Just be the sexy guy." That's what I often had to say to myself, "Darren, you've got to be the sexy guy. You're the main guy that she wants to be with." Or whatever the story is that we're trying to say. So, "You're confident. When you look in the mirror, Darren, you see the sexy guy and you got to do this sort of smokey eyes and all that." I mean, there was a lot of pretending on my end. I had to really act up a storm!

What was it like working with the other celebrities?

The only way I can describe it was if we're trying to pick people for our football team then Anthea is a champion winning footballer already, and we're all trying to get ahold of her for our team, she was so good! She was the hardest worker there. She was constantly practicing. I worked with her quite early on. Then after that, I had to watch my dream partner go with all these other people. And then, they were all saying, "Anthea is my dream partner." And then I was like, "No, Tom. She's my dream partner." "Actually Arg, she's my dream partner." "Bobby, no. She's actually my dream partner." And yeah, there was a bit of competition for her just because she was great to work with. She really tried her best and she was just fun and she just really got it down.

You had masterclasses to recreate some of the iconic scenes from the movie. What was that like?

Other than learning to dance, that was my favourite stuff we did, was the masterclasses. It was just hilarious. All those little challenges that we did, they were so fun and it really helped bring us all together. It was a nice way of breaking up the dancers as well.

What was it like having to do the iconic lake lift?

Rough, really rough. So, my thing is I hate water. And we're in water and I'm like, "Ah." If there's no water, I can do it. And I think you've got to go really low to do it. I was partnered with Chelsea who's the smallest and I'm quite tall. So I didn't go low enough to properly lift her up. It's very rough, that lift. I think the thing with the lift is you just need to make sure that you have the perfect stance and she has the perfect sort of run up. I think most of us could do it on ground, but once you get in the water and you have to try and put your foot in mud, it’s tough. I think Lee got the best one out of the lot because he went last, he was watching everybody else make mistakes.

What was it like working with Ashley and Keith?

They were great. They were really fun. I mean they're both super fans of the movie. When we were told to do the Mambo dance, Ashley did it with the instructor, Jordan. They sort of came in and surprised us with the performance. I was like, "Really? Oh, this is hard." They were great. They made us all feel very welcome and they were very nice and they were just as excited as we were.

How would you sum up the experience?

I would say I've made friends for life. It's a game changer for me. I actually do dance classes now. I'm a regular. I’ve been doing it now for a few months. I do salsa and I do a bit of cha-cha. I just wanted to carry on dancing after being on this show. I enjoyed it so much. I felt like I was learning, so I do that now every week. And I tell you, it's still hard.

You’re just preparing for Strictly now, aren't you?

I mean, I'm just getting ready for when Strictly calls. That is it, yeah! But I would say, without being too dramatic, it's kind of life changing because there's no way in hell I would've ever signed up for classes like that if it wasn't for this show. So yeah, I thank them for that.

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