Another series of Strictly Come Dancing is nearly finished and it’s safe to say this year’s show has been filled with incredible performances and unforgettable contestants.
Each year Strictly gets bigger and better, and the BBC One show continues to go all out for every themed week, most notably Musicals Week and Movie Week.
Halloween is also a big occasion on the show – which runs from September until December – with contestants pulling out their best costumes and spookiest dances in a bid to impress judges Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse and Anton Du Beke.
However, presenters Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly noticeably don’t dress up for Halloween, but there’s a heartbreaking reason behind their lack of costume.
Claudia and Tess don’t dress up for the Strictly Come Dancing Halloween special
(Image: PA)
Claudia, 51, and Tess, 54, haven’t worn costumes on Strictly for nearly a decade due to an accident Claudia’s daughter Matilda was involved in back in 2014.
Matilda, now 17, was just eight years old when her Halloween costume brushed against a candle and went up in flames, leaving mum-of-three Claudia – who also shares Jake, 20, and Arthur, 12, with husband Kris Thykier – distraught.
Recalling the moment to Best magazine, Claudia previously said: “She ‘went up’ is the only way I can describe it – it was a spark and she screamed out for me. It was like those horrific birthday candles that you blow out and they come back. It was really fast. It was definitely life-changing for me.”
She added: “I was talking to someone and then I heard her shout and she was on fire. It feels like she was on fire for hours, but the surgeon said it was probably just seconds.”
The judges dress up for Halloween each year on Strictly
(Image: BBC)
Claudia’s daughter Matilda and son Arthur
(Image: Claudia Winkleman/Instagram)
Matilda spent three weeks in hospital after suffering serious burns to her legs. Claudia’s neighbour Jamie Poulton, who attempted to put out the fire with his bare hands, was left with second-degree burns.
Jamie told the Daily Mail: “This material just keeps reigniting and re-burning. And it is sticky, so it melts on the skin. It doesn’t cinder. It remains hot. It was horrific to be honest. I was trying to put it out with my hand.
“It was a warm night so I wasn’t wearing a jacket. I was trying to roll her and pat her clothes. I was trying to rip the costume off her, which didn’t really help because it just ripped and dropped back. It is very bad material. That stuff is terrible. The costumes are very, very cheap to buy. They are nylon and they just go up.”
Claudia has been open about how the incident has impacted her and she has campaigned endlessly for new regulations regarding Halloween costumes and the material used to create them.
Claudia and Tess haven’t worn Halloween costumes on Strictly for nearly a decade
(Image: PA)
Speaking on the podcast How Did We Get Here? which she co-hosts with psychologist Professor Tanya Byron, Claudia admitted she has “flashbacks” of the accident with Matilda.
“You helped me with flashbacks. I had flashbacks of when my daughter had an accident and they come at you like a bull. Like a tsunami, it’s so enormous you think you’re going to drown. So you have to shove it to one side,” she candidly admitted.
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