Yahoo News Annabel Croft shares how Strictly 'was a distraction' from grief of losing her husband
The tennis ace has thrown herself into the Strictly bubble after the heartbreak of her husband's death.
What did you miss?
Annabel Croft looks like she's having the time of her life on Strictly Come Dancing, but the tennis ace has opened up on her heartbreak behind the scenes and how the show is helping her to cope with grief.
Croft, 57, lost her husband of 30 years Mel Coleman to stomach cancer in May, which came as a huge shock as he had only been diagnosed eight weeks earlier.
She appeared on Lorraine on Wednesday where she shared how learning to dance with Johannes Radebe had been a lifeline during her tough year.
What, how, and why?
Strictly star Annabel Croft was praised for her cheerful Quickstep to Walking On Sunshine in Saturday's live show, but in her personal life the former tennis player has been going through her toughest year.
Croft lost her beloved husband Mel Coleman to stomach cancer in May just eight weeks after he was diagnosed and appearing on Wednesday's Lorraine, she said that Strictly had been a lifeline in her grief.
She had been married to Coleman for 30 years and the couple had three children together, with Croft saying that they were all "completely heartbroken" when she announced the sad news of his death.
Host Lorraine Kelly asked whether Strictly, where she dances with Johannes Radebe, had helped her, and Croft said: "It really has. It’s been a nice distraction from grief.
"It’s been nice to do something joyful and use my body and try to rest my brain from thinking too many dark thoughts."
She also added that her late husband would have loved to have seen her in the show, saying: "He was a huge fan."
What else has been happening on Strictly Come Dancing?
Strictly might have launched a couple of weeks back, but the real competition began on Sunday night with the first elimination.
Battling it out in the bottom two couples were Les Dennis and Nancy Xu, up against Nikita Kanda and Gorka Marquez.
Despite his lack of dance skill, the judges admitted they had expected Dennis to go further in the competition because of his commitment to entertainment, with head judge Shirley Ballas saying that if she was judging the entertainment factor alone, she would have scored him a 10.
But the results of the public vote revealed that Dennis and Xu were first to be voted out.
Dennis said: “I’ve had the best time, this lady has been amazing, a great teacher, she’s really put me through my paces."
He added to Ballas: "Thank you so much for giving me a 10 for entertainment Shirley. I hope I’ve entertained, that’s what I came here for. Strictly is the best and the people who put this on, you’re just all amazing!"
