Bill Bailey's Strictly Diary: 'Lifting the Glitterball trophy was for my mum and dad'

So that’s it, Strictly Come Dancing is wrapped, the final has been danced and, with my partner, Oti Mabuse, we have won the Glitterball trophy. It was a huge thrill to be part of this final show, along with Maisie Smith, HRVY and Jamie Laing, who all put in some terrific performances. The standard of the dancing was excellent throughout and in the end it was very close. I’d like to send a huge message of thanks to everyone who has supported us, sent messages of goodwill, and voted for us over the last nine weeks. This has been a hell of a ride.

Grand Final day was hectic from the first minute. An earlier than usual call time of 7am meant leaving the house at 6am, after a coffee and my bowl of porridge. The studio in Elstree was already buzzing with activity when I arrived, as each couple began running through their routines with the live band for the first time. In my old life, I don’t think I ever danced before 10pm and a drop of Sauvignon Blanc, so just after breakfast felt very odd, but it had to be done as there was a lot to pack in.

After all the couples had practised their three routines, there was the usual round of press, podcasts, recording digital content, costume fittings, and somewhere in all this, lunch. There was a brief gap in the day at around 1.15pm, where I ended up having a nap on the sofa for an hour. Before I nodded off, I was going through the routines in my head, resulting in various limbs twitching to the point that I must have resembled a dog dreaming of chasing a Glitterball.

Later, we had to get ready to record the “Walk Down” for the top of the show. This required precise cueing which was almost too much for us all, our heads already full of steps, twists, kicks, moves and arm shapes. The stage manager asked me and Jamie if we were ok with the cue and I said, confidently, “yes, I think between the two of us we should be fine”.

At which point I then trod on the pyrotechnic box, kicked it over, then nearly fell down the stairs. This matched an earlier anxiety dream I had where I inadvertently knocked over a camera, tripped off some fireworks and burned Ellstree to the ground, emerging from the smoking ruins as Craig Revel Horwood witheringly held up a paddle with 0 on it saying “a disaster, darling”.

And so to the live Final itself. We started with our Judges’ Pick, which was our Quickstep. This was all about the lightness of the footwork and maintaining a good frame throughout, and the pressure was definitely on to improve on our first attempt back in week two. When Craig held up a 9, I remember punching the air, as this was the first time he’s scored us more than an 8! (Not a bad time to get it.)

During the costume change for our Showdance to a classic Queen track, we heard the news about the stricter lockdown rules that would mean families would be apart at Christmas. I thought of my own father, who has been carefully isolating at home, and realising we would not be able to see him over Christmas. This was uppermost in my mind when I spoke about The Show Must Go On now taking on the meaning of an anthem of hope, to try to stay positive, to get through this.

Three 10s from the judges and I was hyperventilating as I ran to the wardrobe department for our final costume change. I realised I still had the plectrum in my hand from playing the guitar. The change was for our Couple’s Choice section of the Final, where we danced to Rapper’s Delight by the Sugarhill Gang. This dance is complex and intricate and requires maximum focus and I had to go outside and just catch my breath. Oti was there as always to calm me down, remind me to breathe and focus, which she has done throughout.

After the three dances, I thanked Oti for all her dedication, her perseverance and brilliance in drawing out of me some innate dance ability. She really is, along with being a wonderful dancer, a truly extraordinary teacher, never giving up on me, and determined not to let me be the comedy act. “No funny money”, as she would say.

When Tess called out our names as winners, I felt a mix of emotions. Elation, utter joy, excitement.. and delight for Oti in making a bit of Strictly history. But also a little bit of sadness, as I thought of my mum and how she’s not around to share this moment, knowing how proud she would have been.

Celebrations had to be curtailed due to the new restrictions, so instead of the usual wrap party, the studio was quickly cleared, the working lights came on, the streamers were collected up into bin bags, and that was that. When we got home, we had a glass of wine and some cheese. It was actually quite a relief after all the intense training and emotions of the last few weeks to settle down with the family and have a quiet moment to take it all in.

I woke up this morning to a flurry of texts from our neighbours - they’d all taken photos of the paparazzi who had been waiting outside our house since 5am. By late morning we felt sorry for them, as we knew we weren’t going anywhere, so my wife, Kris, and I took them out some socially distanced tea and mince pies. And, in another of the many firsts this show has brought me, I danced down the street outside my own house. One last dance.