Layton Williams Breaks the Myth of Unfair Advantage on Strictly Come Dancing

2023-10-20 22:01:04

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"‘It’s not easy for me!’: Layton Williams on Strictly, joy, glitter – and the myth of his unfair advantage | Strictly Come Dancing"

Lunchtime, in a rehearsal room with big windows overlooking south London life several floors below. When his mind should be on Strictly Come Dancing’s cha-cha-cha, or this week’s salsa, Layton Williams might be found getting distracted by something outside. “I’ll be, ‘Oh, look at the kids having fun in the playground, look at that bird,’ and then Nikita’s, like, ‘Hello? Back in the room!’” To be fair, Williams also works very hard, and it shows. His quickstep in week two of Strictly earned him and his professional partner, Nikita Kuzmin, a mammoth 36 points – a dance so ridiculously fun, fast and joyous, I felt a dopamine hit just watching it. The week after, Williams performed a Viennese waltz, looking beautiful in a long skirt. This Sunday, his disco cha-cha-cha brought the highest score so far.

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The Myth of an Unfair Advantage

It has been suggested that Williams, who came to prominence in the BBC comedy Bad Education, but began his career at the age of 12 in the stage version of Billy Elliot, has an unfair advantage – he’s a star of musicals, and went to theatre school. “I’ve taken it on the chin; I get what everyone’s saying,” he says of the criticism. “But if you could be a fly on the wall in this rehearsal room, it’s not easy for me.” Kuzmin’s choreography is challenging because he knows Williams will attempt it, and Williams suspects the judges score him with his musical theatre background in mind. “I’m not sad about that – I want to rise to the challenge.”

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A Celebration of Friendship and Diversity

Strictly has had same-sex couples since 2020, but there is still something fresh about the relationship between the 29-year-old Williams, who is gay, and Kuzmin, his straight pro dancer. “It’s nice to celebrate the fact that a straight man and a gay man can be best of friends – it’s love and respect for each other,” says Williams. “That’s beautiful. More of those relationships, I say.” In terms of each dance, “At the beginning of the week, we think: what’s the concept of the dance? Are we platonic? Are we bros? Are we falling in love? I think it’s a nice dynamic. I could go home [after the show] and already feel like I’ve won in the sense that if I’ve caused a shift in just a few people’s hearts, then boom, thank you, and I’m so glad I said yes to Strictly.”

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