Former contestant Sunetra Sarker has recalled struggling in an initial rehearsal for Strictly Come Dancing but said it led to her forming lasting friendships with some of her co-stars. The actor, now 51, competed on the BBC show in 2014. She was partnered with professional dancer Brendan Cole for the twelfth series of Strictly and they progressed through a number of weeks together before being voted out of it.
Sunetra - known for her roles on shows like Brookside and Casualty - recalled the experience whilst speaking to the Mirror this week. She spoke to us in promotion of her role as a judge for next month's JustGiving Awards ceremony. She brought up her stint on Strictly when asked about the friendships between the panelists on Loose Women , which Sunetra joined in 2021.
She expressed her appreciation for having met women from "different backgrounds" on both. Sunetra told us during our interview earlier this week: "I've been very fortunate in my life, over the years, [that I have] got to meet women I would never ever probably meet in a normal working life scenario, because they are all from different backgrounds. Strictly was the same.
" She continued: "All the women that I did Strictly with we bonded instantly on a WhatsApp group and I think it was me that was the admin. We were doing the group dances, nobody knew what we ..
. we couldn't keep up with it. We were all a bit like rabbits in the headlights.
" She said that Pixie Lott , now 33, had to leave early from the group r.