Interview with Marnie Simpson for The Real Dirty Dancing

17 February 2022

Interview with Marnie Simpson 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 sign up for the Real Dirty Dancing?

I signed up just because it was a bit of a challenge and it was something that was very much out of my comfort zone. I just thought I wanted to try something different.

Are you a fan of the movie?

I'm a massive fan of the movie, Dirty Dancing is in my top 10. I was really excited. And when I was younger, I used to always watch movies and always wanted to be an actress. The thought of doing something like this, where there was some acting involved, it was just something that I've always wanted to try. But when I actually did try it, I was actually so bad at it. I was so embarrassed, but to be fair, it was a lot of fun!

Why do you like the movie so much?

Oh, I love all of the music. That was another reason why I wanted to do it. I'm not a massive music fan. I like old-fashioned music. I love Motown and I just love vintage songs. So to do that was definitely up my street because I just love the soundtrack. My favourite scenes are definitely all of the romantic ones.

Can you relate to Baby in any way?

I definitely feel like I could relate to her because obviously, she did not know how to dance in the beginning and she was very awkward. But then I feel she actually got better, but by the end of it, I still could not dance! We were genuinely there for two weeks and had one day to learn a dance, which I just think is crazy. I know Saffron and Chelsee said that they found that harder than doing Strictly because with Strictly, you had a full week. I'm proud of myself and I definitely tried my best.

How did you find trying to recreate the chemistry Baby and Johnny had?

I found that really hard as well because I'm quite an awkward person. They were really tried to encourage us to have that chemistry with all of our partners and it was just so awkward getting that up close and personal.

You got paired with Tom on the first day and told to show off your moves, what was that like?

We'd only known each other a few hours. Obviously, with Geordie Shore, I used to be fine in those situations. If they'd asked me to do that at Geordie Shore, I would've been like, "Fine. That's fine." But literally, at first we were all so stiff and so awkward with each other. We'd known each other a few hours and they made us dirty dance. Not only with each other, they made us do it in front of Keith and Ashley. It was just so embarrassing. I don't even know what it's going to look like.

How did you find having to do the bungee jump?

That was absolutely terrifying. Oh my God. I was so nervous. It's because I was paired with Darren and I think I was the heaviest girl and he was the heaviest boy. I think our weight combined was in the red zone. And I was like, “oh my God, I'm actually so scared. What if the rope snaps?” It was so scary. I think I even started crying when I was going up, I was that scared. But I did it. I couldn't not do it. Everyone else had done it. I was like, “I can't embarrass myself and not do it”. I was really happy I did it. It was such an experience.

Fans will see Ashley Roberts recreating some of the scenes, what was it like seeing her dance?

I love watching people sing. I love watching people dance. So for me, literally, that was one of the things I loved about this show. I loved watching Jordan and Rose, the choreographers, I loved watching them dance. I loved watching Ashley dance. It was like I had front-row seats to an actual performance. Ashley and Jordan, the choreographer, I think they did the Mambo that Penny and Johnny did in the movie.

What was it like working with Keith Lemon?

He's really funny. I got on really well with him. He really made me laugh. Yeah, he's definitely going to bring the humour to the show. I can't wait to see it.

What was it like behind the scenes after filming?

People would take this seriously that they were just going straight to bed and getting the eight hours sleep.

END