Will Mellor has offered some words of wisdom to the hopeful celebrities taking part in Strictly Come Dancing 2024. Among the line-up, those hoping to lift the Glitterball this year include Nick Knowles , Olympian Sam Quek and England footballer Paul Merson . Will, 48, took part in the BBC dance show in 2022 and was partnered with Nancy Xu.
They were hot favourites from the start, but narrowly missed out on a place in the final following a dance-off against Molly Rainford and Carlos Gu. Sharing his advice for this year’s contestants, the Mr Bates vs The Post Office actor told the Express: “Don’t go half-hearted, you have got to give it everything. “You are going to have ups and downs, and it is going to be tough, but as long as you can say you have done the best that you can, you can’t do any more than that.
” On top of this, Will urged the stars to “respect” their professional partners and “give them everything you can”, adding: “They deserve it, and the show deserves it because you are lucky to be on there.” Will looks back on his time on the show fondly, but admits that is it “one of the hardest things” he has ever done. He explained: “It’s something that I wish I could do again because you only get one go at it.
I didn’t realise that I would be as caught up in it as I was, it becomes your world. “It was one of the hardest things - physically and mentally - to do in the entertainment business because it’s live and you are training six or seven hours a day, then you get home and try and get yourself recovered to go again. “But the reward of getting it right on Saturday night, you can’t feel more alive in that moment.
I’m so glad I did it.” Will has also remained very close with Nancy, 33. He gushed: “My dance partner Nancy is still a very close friend of mine and will be forever, I adore her.
“I’ll be there to support her this season but it’s a bit weird because I don’t want her to dance with anyone else, it’s like she’s cheating on me!” It comes as Will has turned his attention to another project, teaming up with his children Jayden, 20, and Renee, 16, whom he shares with wife Michelle McSween. The trio has partnered with Smart Energy GB and Energy Advice Helpline to share their experience of managing energy use in a busy household. Statistics show that 63 percent of parents worry about the rising cost of household bills over summer due to the increased number of people at home.
In a reversal of roles, 41 percent of parents admit their teenagers pester them to be more energy efficient in the home. Will said: “Like most families, we find our monthly bills can be quite high and as the kids get older, this isn’t likely to change anytime soon. By working with Smart Energy GB, we wanted to better understand where we could make small changes to our routine to help reduce our energy usage.
“The kids love to feel independent and we try to provide them with tools that can make their life easier moving forward. Having a smart meter is just one example of this. After having one installed, we all have a better understanding of our energy usage, household bills and where we can be more energy efficient.
It has made a big change overall.” For further information search ‘ Get a smart meter ’ or watch the full video of Will Mellor and his children finding out who's more energy efficient in the household..
