Rose Ayling-Ellis has opened up about her experience during her time on BBC Strictly Come Dancing with Giovanni Pernice. The Eastenders actress, who was crowned the champion of the dance floor with the Glitterball Trophy in 2021, said she 'hated' one of her performances.
Rose and Giovanni impressed when they danced in complete silence and synchronicity. However the 29-year-old, said she hated the original concept, fearing it might be seen as fishing for sympathy votes, reports Birmingham Live.
Speaking to The Guardian, Rose said: "I hated it. I watched this pre-recorded video by external choreographers and immediately didn't like what they'd come up with. I was up for the idea, as long as it wasn't a patronising stunt".
She expressed her concerns, describing the proposed ideas as a misinterpretation of the deaf experience: "An attempt to get the pity vote, all sad, dreary and 'poor me'," before adding, "It was what hearing people think deaf people experience. Very insular, cut-off, small. It was so sad. And that's not me."
Rose went on to explain the terms of her agreement to participate: "I told them, if you want me, I'll need you to agree to certain things." Much to her surprise, the show's producers went above and beyond her requests. "They went further than I'd asked," she noted, leading her ultimately to commit to the show.
"So I said yes. On my first day, everyone finger spelt their name to me. It was a special gesture." said Rose, clearly moved by the welcoming act. The sentiment was echoed by Claudia Winkleman in the interview with the paper: "I need to make such a bold statement because I know her well enough to know she never would.
"And to be clear, Rose isn't astonishing because she won a dance contest while not hearing the music. She's utterly brilliant because she's genuinely hilarious, because she's ridiculously humble, and because she's bonkers talented."
Rose added: "I've had so many opportunities because of all this. And I'm in this position where people are listening to me.
"It comes with a sense of responsibility: I don't want to make a mistake, or let the deaf community down. It feels a lot is on my shoulders."
