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O'Donnell: I joked about Strictly appearance before being asked

Daniel O'Donnell has revealed he had joked about appearing on Strictly Come Dancing just weeks before being offered the chance
Daniel O'Donnell has revealed he had joked about appearing on Strictly Come Dancing just weeks before being offered the chance Daniel O'Donnell has revealed he had joked about appearing on Strictly Come Dancing just weeks before being offered the chance
By Suzanne McGonagle

DANIEL O'Donnell has revealed he had joked about appearing on Strictly Come Dancing just weeks before being offered the dancing opportunity.

The Donegal crooner said he had previously turned down the chance to appear on several Christmas episodes of the BBC One show due to work commitments.

But after taking a break from touring, the country star said he had joked about contacting Strictly bosses to tell them he was available.

"We love the show. We watch all the time and funny enough, a few weeks before I was asked, I'm on a break at the minute from touring, we were joking 'I wonder if I asked to get on, would I get on'," he said.

"I had been asked to do the Christmas special a few times but I could never commit because it's a big commitment.

"Then about two weeks later, this request came in.

"I read it in an email and then I read it again and went over to my wife and said look at this and we were just amazed."

The Kincasslagh star said after being initially hesitant, it was his wife Majella who encouraged him to accept the offer.

"My first thought was that we had decided to take this break and do other things and I thought at this time, it's just not the right time," he told BBC Breakfast.

"She (Majella) automatically said 'what are you talking about, you can take a break any time, you might never get asked to go on Strictly again'.

"So that was kind of the decision made and we contacted the people involved and conversations went back and forward and here we are."

The 53-year-old and dance partner Kristina Rihanoff were clearly having a ball as they performed a Charleston on Saturday and survived the competition's first elimination.

O'Donnell said afterwards he was "absolutely thrilled" to get through, while Majella was also happy at the result.

"Yeepppee! They're through to next week! Just take one week at a time. Well done you two," she wrote on Twitter.

Olympic sprinter Iwan Thomas was the first contestant to be voted off.