Quotes from Anton du Beke

I like to get up and get out. Otherwise you end up kicking about, and it's easy to flick the telly on; then before you know it, it is 11 A.M. and you haven't done anything.

My favourite dance is the Foxtrot. It's a proper dance with proper music. It has class.

I just like to sit and admire my garden; it's so well kept by my gardener and my girlfriend.

I've been playing golf as long as I've been dancing, since I was 13 or 14.

I've been playing golf as long as I've been dancing, since I was 13 or 14. I play off six. I like to get out on a golf course as often as I can.

I wish I'd become a professional dancer sooner. I did other jobs - like baking - while dancing part-time, and didn't commit until I was 29.

At places like Chelsea, often the garden displays are so big and grand that you'd never be able to have them at home.

I just get grumpy with bad behaviour.

My only drive was to be the best dancer in the world, but I never won the world championship.

I work out in the gym three times a week on top of my dancing, so I have to eat a lot to keep my weight and energy up: a big breakfast, and little and often throughout the day.

Being fit is the easiest part of being a dance professional. I used to just throw on a backpack full of rocks and run up a hill. You don't even have to go to a gym.

It's great that ballroom dancing is being recognised. For many years ballroom dancers were misunderstood and other dance forms didn't want anything to do with us.

One day, I just wandered into a dance class full of girls, and that was it. I thought, 'Hang on! I'll have a bit of this.' I went back a week later and got dragged up by the teacher. It wasn't a massive calling.

I remember watching the Three Tenors at the World Cup in 1990, and it was amazing. They made opera accessible to the man in the street.

I'm happy to dance with anyone, to be honest. I've had some great partners, who have all been talented. But not all of them at dancing.

I know what I'm good at, and if I'm asked to do something I'm not - like hip-hop dancing - I get self-conscious.

I've never worried about being rich or famous - for me, it's all about the dancing.

I'm busier than ever and it's led to new opportunities. But I've never worried about being rich or famous - for me, it's all about the dancing.

So much illness is self-induced - which I can't stand. And I'm not a good nursemaid. Don't call me if you're ill.

The Fred Astaire movies made a huge impression on me.

When you dance together, there's a fabulous interaction. It's quite intimate. You're touching your partner, leading them. Learning how to behave in that person's proximity is a skill. I love it. I can't imagine tiring of it.

Because we had no other relatives living in the U.K., me, my parents and my siblings continuously journeyed abroad to bond with our extended family.

When I'm dancing with any woman, I immediately get rid of intimacy barriers. I just give her a big hug and crack on.

Give up smoking. Don't get so fat. So much illness is self-induced - which I can't stand. And I'm not a good nursemaid. Don't call me if you're ill.