BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Nikita Kuzmin blown away as he makes Liverpool admission

Strictly Come Dancing star Nikita Kuzmin has been amazed by the welcome he has received in Liverpool. The professional dancer is staying in the city centre while training with Sam Quek on the latest season of the BBC contest.

The Celebrity Big Brother star spoke to the ECHO in an exclusive interview about how much he is enjoying his time in Merseyside. The 26-year-old said: "I'm loving it. I think it's great to be up north and in Liverpool. So far it's been fun. I love the people.

"The people are great and there is so much to do here. The whole Albert Dock is gorgeous. I love the city centre and there is also a lot of history."

However, the dancer joked it wasn't perfect as he laughed: "I don't love the weather."

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Nikita was born in Ukraine but moved to Italy aged nine. The dancer is well versed in what makes a good pizza and pasta and has been wowed by the Italian food on offer in Merseyside.

Nikita has particularly enjoyed trips to the Rudy's branch on the Albert Dock and Joey's on Hardman Street and has been blown away by the amount you are given as he laughed: "The food portions are great."

However, the dancer pointed towards his hilarious gaffe last week when he sung the wrong Shakira song as he admitted he isn't the best with names so can't remember the specifics of every place he's loved in Liverpool. He said: "There's a lot of nice stuff but I keep trying to explore and changing.

"I'm not going to lie, as you notice with the Shakira song, I don't remember the names of things, I just go with the flow. I see it and then I remember where I've been."

Nikita and Sam have forged a strong partnership and the dancer is thrilled to be partnered with the Olympic gold medal winner. Speaking about the moment when he found out he had been partnered with Sam, Nikita said: "I asked around and everyone said that Sam is the loveliest person to have on set.

"No matter if you're in makeup or the host, she is always nice to everyone. That kind of gave me a sense of tranquillity and allowed me to say, 'OK, I'm going to have a very nice person in the room who is very smiley, open and communicative'."

Sam heaped praise on Nikita's coaching methods and said the dancer is developing her ability in the best possible manner. The proud Merseyside native told the ECHO: "What you see is what you get with Nikita. He's just positive and he's everything I need in terms of a coach and a dance teacher because he pushes me to where I need to get but also keeps me in check.

"Sometimes I do try to run before I can walk. Nikita will just say, 'Sam, calm down, you're not a dancer so take a step back'. I want to rush sometimes."

Strictly Come Dancing contestants Sam Quek and her dancing partner Nikita Kuzmin spoke to the ECHO in an exclusive interview
Strictly Come Dancing contestants Sam Quek and her dancing partner Nikita Kuzmin spoke to the ECHO in an exclusive interview -Credit:Liverpool Echo

The two danced a Samba to Hips Don't Lie in Week Four and Nikita explained the quick turnaround with new routines is the most difficult thing about training. He said: "In other sports or competitions, you would have weeks and months to prepare on one thing.

"Here we just have three and a half days to go through the whole thing. And then at the start of next week, you have to say, you know what you learned last week, forget it! That's time pressure but this is what makes the competition so exciting."

However, Nikita insisted the competitive element of Strictly pales in comparison to making sure you savour the magic of the moment as he looks forward to what comes next in the race for the glitterball. He said: "For me it's just about people enjoying themselves and having a good time. It's very important that yes, we are doing Strictly. Yes, it's a competition and yes, now it's getting tough. But lets be honest, there is life outside of this. She has kids, she has a husband. I have a life."

He added: "You always just need to be on your toes and enjoy the weeks that you get because that is a blessing to be still here. People are getting eliminated so the fact that people even vote for us and we can be here is already so lucky."

Strictly Come Dancing: The Results airs tonight at 7:20pm on BBC One