'I was on Strictly and had one way to outshine the others that viewers didn't see'

Former Strictly Come Dancing professional AJ Pritchard has spilled the beans on some of his backstage tactics to outshine other couples during the live shows. AJ, who is originally from Stoke-on-Trent, shared his sneaky strategies in an exclusive interview with OK!.

Although he's since left Strictly to explore other TV opportunities, AJ, who was a pro dancer on the hit BBC dance show from 2016 to 2019, reportedly still tunes into every series. The 30-year-old, who still has family in Sneyd Green, detailed the cunning methods he employed to get the audience and judges on side before even stepping onto the live stage.

He confessed to using the VT time to whip up excitement among the audience, creating the illusion for viewers at home that they were firm favourites as they made their entrance.

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He revealed: "Plus, just before we go live, you'll have the floor manager going "four, three, two one," and pointed at you so you know you're live. But just before that I would literally make the audience scream and get really loud, go a bit crazy so that it sounds like they're excited for us even if that's a bit of peer pressure technique. But it always works, so I always did it."

He explained that his aim was always to get the crowds cheering and the judges impressed before they'd even be shown on TV - all in a bid to outshine his fellow contestants, reports OK!.

He said: "I think one of the secrets I wouldn't want to say this is a secret but more this is something you probably haven't thought about... So when you do the show Strictly, obviously we know it is live TV. Good, bad, different if something goes wrong, we see it. If it goes good, we see it."

Yet, outside the world of Strictly Come Dancing, ex-pro AJ has clearly decided that acting is not for him, having dabbled in it after his time on the dance floor. He had teamed up with his brother Curtis Pritchard, also a dancer, to make an appearance in nine episodes of Hollyoaks back in 2021, but it seems that will be his first and last foray into acting.

As dancers, the sibling duo took on the roles of brothers Marco and Jacob, but their casting drew criticism from some soap actors who believed talent should trump social media popularity in selection processes.

Nevertheless, AJ emerged unbothered by the critiques, stating that while he "enjoyed" the opportunity to work on set, acting isn't in his stars. The former I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! contestant is turning his attention to other ventures, continuing to keep fit, boost his YouTube presence, and initiate a brand-new enterprise.

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