Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Parenting Hell - S05 EP28: Anton Du Beke

Episode Date: October 28, 2022

 Joining us this episode to discuss the highs and lows of parenting (and life) is the brilliant dancer and presenter - Anton Du Beke. Anton's new book 'The Ballroom Blitz' is out now. Thanks, Rob + Josh. We're going on tour!! Fancy seeing the podcast live in some of the best venues in the UK? Of course you do, you're not made of stone! Tickets available now on the dates and at the venues below. We can't wait to see you there... ON SALE NOW  14th April 2023 - Manchester AO Arena 19th April 2023 - Nottingham 20th April 2023 - Cardiff  21st April 2023 - London (The O2) 23rd April 2023 - London (Wembley) 28th April 2023 - Birmingham Utilita Arena  If you want to get in touch with the show here's how: EMAIL: [e-mail] TWITTER: @parenting_hell INSTAGRAM: @parentinghell A 'Keep It Light Media' Production  Sales, advertising, and general enquiries: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, I'm Rob Beckett. And I'm Josh Willicombe. Welcome to Parenting Hell, the show in which Josh and I discuss what it's really like to be a parent, which I would say can be a little tricky. So, to make ourselves, and hopefully you, feel better about the trials and tribulations of modern day parenting, each week we'll be chatting to a famous parent about how they're coping. Or hopefully how they're not coping. And we'll also be hearing from you, the listener, with your tips, advice and, of course, tales of parenting woe.

Because, let's be honest, there are plenty of times when none of us know what we're doing. Hello, you're listening to Parenting Hell with... Can you say Rob Beckett? Rob Beckett. Can you say Josh Widdicombe? Rob Beckett. Josh Widdicombe. Rob Beckett.

Not chicken. Not chicken? Come on, not chicken. Here's my two-year-old violet doing the intro i also have a five-year-old called scarlet my top tip to share is to write down the crazy things your under five say such as your legs are all smooth mummy i like them better when they're like a tree that is absolutely brutal love. Love your podcast, Leanne. Northamptonshire. Oh, Leanne.

Yeah, that is brutal. How are you? Yeah, I'm good. Not too bad. How are you? V, V, fine. V, V, fine? V, V, okay.

V, V, okay. Are you been working too much? Quite chilled? Busy? Half, really. Half, half, really? Half, half, really. It's been all right. It's been all right,'s been fine rob how are the kids fine rob yeah i've not got anything to fill this 10 minutes pardon

it's 10 minute intro i've just not got anything rob oh i just thought i'd fess up should i just fess up and be honest i've got nothing this is what this show's about being honest with the listeners should we do some correspondence then? I'm panicking. It's better than you invent it. Why don't you, how about, let's do this, right? We'll do correspondence, but pretend now that your whole career is based off, be it like talking about your kids and you have to have something.

It is. Yeah, but now invent something. Okay, yeah. Pretend you, oh, you never guessed what they did earlier. Oh, what did they do, Josh? Yeah, fine. Yeah. My daughter has been cautioned by the police.

How has she? What for? Joint riding. Really? What was it, a scooter? No, it was a... She had a booster seat, but in a Ford Escort. Right, a Ford Escort. A car that hasn't been made for 20 years? Yeah, I panicked. I panicked, Rob.

That's your issue with that story? Yeah. That's your issue with that story? Yeah, let's stick to being honest. Correspondence? Okay, cool. Yeah, thank you. Here we go.

What have we got here? Hi, hello. Just listened to your latest episode and discussion on home birth. I'm a midwife and had a home birth for our third baby last summer. Regarding the water issue, the water is pumped via tubing connected to the tap for filling up the pool. Can only assume the guy in the store was unsure how to fill it as no midwives had arrived. After the birth and once mum is on the sofa slash bed, our sofa was brand new. So we kept the plastic wrapping on to use for the birth.

That's clever. That's clever. That's clever. You don't want to start ruining a new G plan, do you? No. With all sorts. The water is then pumped directly down the toilet. Oh.

Definitely not recommended that it is pumped into the garden, though, as midwives get this all the time as the question. As well as also getting asked if we can use a paddling pool instead of a hire and a birthing pool. Oh, my God. Now, you've got... Come on, now. Come on.

You've got to invest in a home birth in for a penny in for a power if you're home birthing come on the money you save on a taxi and snacks exactly those those hospital and petrol price sandwiches are a disgrace yes um she said yes so she said you have to use a home birth one um do you want to hear about a panic attack at asda yep hey sexy boys i'm a mum to a gorgeous 17-month-old son, Adam. I absolutely love your podcast and I've listened from the beginning. Anyway, I just had to pause today's episode and write this as the topic of panic attacks brought back a memory

that I had apparently suppressed. A few years ago, I had a lot going on over an extended period of time. Yadda, yadda, yadda. Not going to get into the nitty gritty. It all had got too much of me. Did she say that or you? Yeah, no no me actually i read it and i thought you know what fuck off your ball no no she's written that

i'm fucking banging on about your life yeah whatever fuck off who cares go and tell someone who gives a shit I know I'm joking the author of this yeah said yada yada yada

I'm not going into the nitty gritty it all got too much for me I nipped to Asda to just grab a couple of things but once in the aisles I completely forgot what I needed

cue full blown panic attack and emotional breakdown I ended up on the floor sobbing and shaking like a lost toddler and people were avoiding my aisle altogether oh some people are brutal aren't they um after i put some of those cones around her that was the worst bit put put sawdust on her like sick is this insensitive i went to talk about a poor woman that's opening up a panic attack we've opened up and we've made

yeah we've we talked about our panic attacks Anyway, they didn't do any of that. Anyway, she's being avoided by people on the floor upset. After what seemed like a lifetime, a lady who tried to comfort me and suggested that I call someone. I called my mum who, as always, calmed me down and took me through my next steps, which involved stand up, leave Asda. Oh, dear.

Go to her house and wait for her to come home. Oh, bless her. Oh, that's nice. She could bring her mum. And glad that you can share. I think being able to share it shows progress because you're not ashamed of it or embarrassed. And I think if you're not ashamed or embarrassed of anything,

you can get things sorted. So I hope you're feeling better now. But please don't send any of that fucking nitty gritty, god's sake um i'm joking you can always send nitty gritty to us send as much nitty or gritty as you want and if it's just pure knit that's fine too or pure grit we can take it yeah have you got enough on here hi rob and josh firstly love podcast i'm so behind i don't want to miss one you have me laughing so hard oh so oh this is good so all new time lockdown low for me my eldest four years was dying they're that far behind that they're sending a lockdown i think no they're talking about was talking about low points and when you've had a bit of we've got

had loads come in so i'm trying to do a few of them because people have opened up we've never really read it out which makes me feel bad so, this was my all-time lockdown low for me. My eldest four years was dying to go to local park, which has recently been done up. We decided to go down on a cold day. Who hasn't? Whilst my mum pushed my youngest in a pram, 10 months old. My son and I were having a great time

until he announced he needed a wee. No problem. We nipped behind a tree and did the deed. No sooner were we back at the sandpit, he announced he needed a wee no problem we nipped behind a tree and did the deed no sooner were we back at the sand pit he announced he needed a poo i wouldn't mind but firstly the park has no toilets and secondly my mum who had the baby wipes was on the other side of the park with the youngest oh no me and my son legged it across the park hunting for a bush or tree and i found the bushiest one we could i saw my mum in the distance and shouted,

I need the wipes, he needs a poo. I don't have any poo bags. My mum walked over, throwing the wipes in the air, and shouted, dig a hole and bury it. Needless to say, I was scratching around in the dirt for a big enough stick. As my son decided to do the world's biggest, longest poo. Of course, of course.

I found myself digging a hole to bury my son's poo, not before accidentally sticking my finger in it. Oh, no, oh, no. With no alcohol gel to be seen, neither to say we went home early with my son shouting, Nana, I did a poo and my mommy stuck her finger in it before hiding it in the ground oh my god i won't be going back to the park for a while lou the poo that's louisa bullers full name there she sent it in though

scratching a hole for your child to shit in it i mean that is love isn't it that is love rob i hope you do the same for me i would I don't know what I don't think I saved you though I don't know about being sick at that party once I don't know if we're allowed to talk about it we've talked about it before

yeah and I cleared well I cleared up all your sick that you produced on my way to the toilet would you clear up my poo probably yeah thanks mate

mainly because I can't really deal with you being cancelled also I just don't want to be associated with a man that shits himself in hallways at Christmas parties yeah you know what i mean you've chosen the wrong double act partner but yes if you did a poo on the floor and you would like you weren't

compasmentous to sort it out i would clear it up for you oh i thought would you stick your finger in it no i wouldn't dig a hole i'd probably get some tissue and pick up the poo and pop it down the toilet yeah fair enough But if we're outside, yes, I would dig one with my fingers. Would you dig a hole for me? In a heartbeat. Quick question.

Yeah. Is that the right way for us to go into Anton Dubek? I mean, I think he's seen enough. He's seen people dig themselves holes on the Strictly Dance floor. That's nice. That's nice. Get one.

Yeah. And then, you know, yeah. Is that good? I think that is nice. It does feel weird. He is so slick, so wonderful, and so immaculate.

We can't deliver you Anton Dubek after talking about digging a hole for human shit, can we? Yes, we can. Here we go. Here is Anton Dubek. I'm very excited about this. We are joined by television royalty. Everyone loves this man, Anton Dubek.

Anton, can I say before we start this, I want to say thank you for how lovely you were to my daughters when they came to Strictly because you had so much time for them. You were so friendly and everyone was, but I don't know, you've got a sort of, like, a real classy presence that you don't really, you've got a sort of, like, a real classy presence that you don't really see as much anymore. And you came into that room, and you were so lovely to the girls,

and they still, like, talk about you. You looked amazing. And they come in, and they absolutely loved you before, but afterwards you're their favourite now. And you were so sweet and kind. And it is hard when you're on Strictly and everyone wants a bit of you and things like that to do that all the time but you were so classy it was unbelievable so thank you very much for making it special for him well that's kind of you i mean that's that's

lovely and i thank you for saying i mean that's a lovely thing to say do you know it's just sort of normal really because i think about brucey a lot in the world of showbiz and whenever you use the word showbiz i just think about brucey and he was a great hero of mine a great sort of influence on my uh sort of career really because when i had the great fortune of starting in showbiz if you like having already had a bit of a uh another sort of career a bit like uh fred astaire had two careers people probably won't remember but he was very he was he was a child star and he went into the theatre, musical theatre, one thing or another. And then that career ended. He had that with his sister.

That was the first part of his life. And then she went off and got married. And he didn't know what to do because he was a double act. And then suddenly he stumbled into the movies. And that classic line about did a screen test, can't sing, was it can't sing, can't act, can dance a bit. And then, of course, he became Fred Astaire as we think of him today. And it's similar in my regard, is that I had

quite a long career as a competitive dancer. So travelling around the world, competing and dancing and doing that. And then I came into Strictly Come Dancing a bit later and into telly, if you like, but having sort of did it immediately with Brucey, my hero. So immediately I'm looking at the master of the art.

And I've always loved him from afar and sort of wanted to sort of be a bit Brucey in what I did. I love that sort of thing of being in front of an audience and doing, you know, entertaining, singing and dancing, doing a few gigs. I love that. I love that whole variety sort of affair. But of course it wasn't around before. Yeah.

It didn't sort of exist. It was a bit, it was of another time, et cetera. And we didn't have turns like that anymore. We had either straight comedians. You guys, for example, straight comedians who were funny and brilliant and do what you do. And then you had either singers. Yeah.

And hilariously, everybody wants to be something else as well. Yeah. what you do. And then you had either singers and every, and hilariously everybody wants to be something else as well. Actors want to be rock stars and rock stars want to be actors sort of classically. And so I, I stumbled into Strictly Come Dancing or came into Strictly Come Dancing and immediately with the best, with Brucey. Amazing. And I was lucky enough. I don't know if you've ever worked with any of your sort of comedy heroes from from from before josh is used to it now he's relaxed in my

company josh yeah well it's a lovely thing that you've kept him on and um it's uh and so you learn immediately from the best and it's the style of thing that I love. So whenever I'm doing stuff, I just think about not being like Brucey, but how would Brucey be? Brucey would be classy and Brucey would, you know, it's that classic thing. You'd want people to be as you'd want, as you wish they were. Which sounds contrived. Sounds contrived. And I don't want it to be. It's not contrived at all. I think you feel like there's a responsibility to be doing that, especially when you're at Strictly. But it's such a busy, crazy event. You'd be well off in your rights to go, right, it's a live show. I need to be doing that especially when you're at Strictly but it's such a busy crazy event you'd be well when you're right to go right I need it's a live show I need to be left alone I go to my room and do all that but you sort of um you look very much like you're just

floating through it and I think that comes across on the screen and that's why people love it is it less stressful doing the judging now than it was doing the dancing I mean it's your weeks are shorter that's for sure um it's it's very different, really, because when you're with a partner, my attitude about being with a partner was really kind of nasty, was it was all about her. That was the most important thing. So I was always focusing all my energy on her. But a part of my energy was going, okay,

what do we need in order for this to work? So you're making sure, okay, but still you're setting up the scenario that it's going to be successful. So you've got to, you know, there's got to be an amount of calmness and there's got to be about the amount of focus. And, you know, this partner you have might be a bit of a scatterbrain and might want to go off, but there is a moment there where you've got to bring them back and go, okay,

let's just focus on this for a second now because in five minutes we're going to go on. I don't know if you do. And so there is a bit of that. And then some people are a bit quiet and calm and you've got to sort of get them out of themselves a little bit. So you have to understand your partner, but know what's about to happen.

So sort of be in the moment as people describe it now. And so that's quite exhausting. And of course, there's always that sort of realisation at some stage you probably can get voted off. And that's upsetting that part i don't have to do anymore which i'm delighted but with the judging because you're you're you've got to concentrate on every couple who's dancing and you've got to try i feel i've got to try concentrate pay attention and try and find something useful that will help them moving

forward yeah it's easy just sit there and give it all that with a lovely jacket on and go, I'm amazing. Look at me, I have a smile. Did you know I wanted that? Give it all that. Name it, no names. What did you think of that? Oh, I didn't really look.

I have to be honest. And I'm going to ask a question before we get on to your kids and parenting. But have you ever been in lined up, you know, on the dance off and you may stay you may go and obviously you always want to stay with them but have you ever been stood there thinking well next wednesday afternoon a few of my pals are going to the power so i know i've got you back on saturday but that would be wouldn't be the worst thing to happen it's not around golf dropped you there we missed a step never mind it wasn not a round golf book on Wednesday. I wonder if I, I wonder if I can get that.

Dropped you there. We missed a step. Nevermind. It wasn't a very good one anyway. You're fine. Do you know, and I say this seriously, I'd like to say,

just to be funny, that it didn't matter, but it really matters. Even if you've got somebody who doesn't, who's not, you know in your heart of heart, this isn't great. And I'll probably be available for panto at christmas this is you know you hope you hope that the audience at home will vote you through or you hope she

might find something or you hope that people love the number and still from from day one to the last time i did it getting voted off was the worst thing. And I love that. I never had a moment anywhere where I went, oh, you know, maybe I'll give this one a swim. It'd be better for both of us if somebody just voted us off. And I'm glad about that because otherwise I'd have probably gone, oh, I shouldn't

be doing this anymore. But I always fail. And you watch the show on Saturday nights and the guys and the girls are jumping up and down with delight getting through. But I just love to see how excited and delighted they are with getting through. I mean, Graziano,

you think it was the best competition he's ever danced in. You think it was the world championship. He was so delighted to get through and you know, you don't want to go home. And that's why the show works so well the pros really care and they always have and i think that's really important so we should we should i mean we've got loads of strictly questions i mean that was that was the longest we've done not about children but we use on the biggest show in the country that

everyone's obsessed with so i think that's fair but we've i think he's at the right for a 10 minute yeah uh thing at the start. Right, let's talk about your kids. How many kids have you got, Anton, and what age? I've got two children. I've got twins, a boy and a girl, George and Henrietta, and they're five and a half. As you know, with young children, it's very important.

They'll be six in March. They'll be six in March, end of March. And at the moment, it's half term. I don't know when this is going out, but we've got half term at the moment. And they've both had colds. Of course they have. Oh, yeah. Lurgy, because they're at school and all children get the lurgy

and they pass it round. It's like a game. No, you can have it again, though. Oh, really? You've got to have it again. And I just can't believe something so small can produce that much to not. It's like an endless supply and a whole

huge one could come out that fills your whole hat and you're trying to find somewhere for it it happens after, what's in your head, where's it coming from I worry about turning them upside down and them drowning in their own I like to keep them the right way up. Only do they enjoy school?

Because they're twins, so they're like, that's quite, must be quite interesting watching them go through it together. So like on their first day of school, you're not just worrying about one, you're worrying about two different people. And it's really interesting because they're a boy and a girl. I never think of them as twins at all, actually. And they used to go to the same school, get in nursery together and all that sort of stuff.

And then they went to sort of reception year at school and they went to separate schools. Yeah. But they are sort of side by side. You do one drop off at 10 past eight and at 20 past eight, you do the other drop off, you know. And you see all the school mums do one drop-off at 10 past eight and at 20 past eight, you do the other drop-off. You know, you just go. And you see all the school mums at one drop-off.

You go down the road and a lot of them got children and the others, they got boys and girls. And then the other school as well. They're both lovely schools and they're doing wonderfully and they're enjoying it. But it really is. I mean, when we had them little, we didn't do that whole, okay, pink for girls, blue for boys and because there's too much

stuff so it was a case of this is the stuff you choose what you want yeah a lot of stuff clothes toys and it is funny you know i promise you we never we never bought particularly sort of gender specific clothes either something that fit because you know in four weeks they're going to We never bought particularly sort of gender-specific clothes, either something that fit. Because, you know, in four weeks, they're going to grow out anyway. And a lot of it is hand-me-down stuff. I mean, you've got friends who have got children a year or two older, and they go, oh, hey, I've got some pile of clothes.

If you don't try, I'll have that. Thank you very much. And I know there's one jacket George had. It's on his fourth child. It's a lovely bit of quality. It's a nice boss jacket. Oh, it's a nice boss. Oh, no, it's a proper bit of kit.

But someone gave it to us. We gave it to someone else, and it's now on the fourth child. And it looks good, doesn't it? Because they only wear it about four times each, don't they? Yeah. And it's a winter coat. I mean, you get one winter out of it. And that's it.

Next one, it's valid. So off they go, you get one winter out of it. And that's it. Next winter, that's it. So off they go. And it goes on to another thing. But it's really amazing how the children gravitate towards, you know, she's all about dollies and boys, and he's all about Ninjago and all that sort of stuff. And it's very, very interesting. We went through Hot Wheels for a phase. Now it's all about sort of stuff. And it's very, very interesting. We went through Hot Wheels for a phase.

Now it's all about Ninjago. Quiet boy, traditionally boy and girl sort of things. They watch the same sort of programs, although he's, as I say, Ninjago mad at the moment. I mean, Ninjago, brilliantly. Peter Rabbit is a sort of staple. And then we have all the sort of movies. Daddy's favorite is Paddington.

Paddington. So we all watch Paddington. Paddington Bear, Paddington. And so most mornings we do a duet with Gary Barlow, which is lovely. And yeah, it's just, it's really interesting though. It's lovely, but it's really interesting. You said that Paddington's your favourite.

So do you have a say in the TV? I have literally no way of steering my daughter's TV taste. And if I were to say, I'd like to watch Paddington, it would actively make her not want to watch it, I think. How old? She's five. Oh, geez. It is a volatile age.

I tend to say to them, it's either we watch Paddington now for 10 minutes or I'm going to put you in a greenhouse again. That's where I've gone wrong. That's where I've gone wrong. I think I've had to be a very firm line. Josh will start building a greenhouse. You don't even need one, Josh. Just lie.

In zone two, you haven't got room for a greenhouse, Rob. That's your old garden then. You've just got to... That's conservatory. That's what you, Josh. Just lie. In Zone 2, you haven't got room for a greenhouse, Rob. That's your old garden then. You've just got... That's conservatory. That's what you've got. Conservatory. I'm lucky because they like Paddington. But I have to say, that literally is the only thing.

That is. I'm absolutely with you. That is literally the only thing. And only if I catch them in a good mood, if they've had Cocoa Pops. Otherwise, yeah, I have no control over. how was it when they were little though like obviously about newborn babies are hard work but twins was it was it that was it double the trouble or was it was it just nice to sort of almost go like oh we've got two straight off the bat well i it's very difficult really

because you you see things through rose tinted spectacles a lot yeah i know i do i thought it was a breeze i thought oh no it was marvelous it was easy as pie if you spoke to my wife she might give you a different version um and one might say slightly more accurate but um so when when you're when yours were born was you dancing on strictly still then so your was your diary really busy so they they were in March. They were end of March. So I was on tour. Oh, that was quite lucky.

Oh, you was on tour? Oh, no. I was doing the end of my tour. So I had one more week to go. They were born on Monday. And they stayed in because they were a bit little. So they stayed in for a week, which was amazing because I had a few more shows to do.

And I had about three or four more shows that week. And then I picked, I gathered them all up on the Sunday. And we went home. It was great because it was great for Hannah and great for the children because, you know, what do I know? But it does seem quite, quite brisk to have a baby and the following day you're taking it home. Yeah, it's quite intense.

It's normal. And you go, okay, hoping for a little bit of coaching before I left the building. to have a baby and the following day you're taking it home. Yeah, it's quite intense. In normal circumstances. And you go, okay, hoping for a little bit of coaching before I left the building. But I'm sure I can work this out as I go along. But Hannah, I'll say this straight away, Hannah is remarkable. My wife, Hannah, is remarkable.

One, for having twins. Can I just say that? Yeah. Unbelievable. I mean, quite stunning. And just being a great, great mum as well. She makes everything fun and she's really brilliant. But I feel like we were lucky that we had them together

because you're doing it all at the same time. Yeah. If you've got more, I think if there's two of you, and I was able to be around certainly for the first uh a few maybe six months i think i was around as well so it was a bit easier in that regard although if i say that to you i know hannah might go really you timed it pretty well though if your tour finished in march when like one week but she was still in the hospital and then you're sort of clear till sept time for Strictly, aren't you?

Well, I had some time there. You know, it's like in our industry, it's a feast of famine a little bit, really. We were lucky. The children were good as well. They got into a routine pretty quick. But it was a joyous thing, maybe because we're a bit older. But, oh, I don't know. Maybe just, okay.

How old was you when you had them? I was 50. Wow. Yeah. I was actually 50. I was 50 when we had the children. So it was, you know, it was, but having said that, I was a bit more sensible and a bit more settled.

You weren't going my hell-raising you you've lost it that's the end of my life what was the 28 year old what was the 28 year old or 30 year old anton de beck like i was i was i was really really poor for a start off yeah yeah i mean like and holding my shoe you know secondhand shirts all that sort of stuff as a young man really poor for a start off. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, like, and holds him a shoe, you know, secondhand shirts, all that sort of stuff as a, as a young man and also not equipped and to an absolute lunatic as well.

Competitive animal. Ambitious. Yeah. Ambitious, driven, focused solely on me and what I was going to be doing, my next competition. We've got to win this. I hate everyone.

Let me just start with that. Everyone's against me. Everyone was against me. I was an absolute lunatic. So what happened? Because that couldn't be more of a description of a different person to the one that's sat here now, or even was on, you know, it's been across our screens. Well, Strictly Come Dancing started, when I finished,

when I started Strictly, I was still, you know, I'd just come back from China. We were in China doing a big competition in China over there. And then they came back and they said, do a Strictly Come Dancing. All right, brilliant. And we just thought it'd be five minutes and that that would be one series, that would be it. And it was such a massive hit, and everyone knows the sort of history, and we did a second series in year one. So we did one in the sort of March, April, and then the second one now.

Right. And so I never competed again. I didn't sort of retire. I just sort of never went back to it because then we started doing Strictly and and things start to change and it's one of these things if you get off that treadmill of of competitive life it's very difficult to get back on because you want to go back where you left off but you've got some catching up to do so we sort of never went back and and I realized on Strictly Come Dancing as I said before that

this wasn't about me this was about my celebrity i didn't have to prove myself i was already you know i was already a professional that's what they started me because i was good yeah so let's you know so don't go and so oh look how good i am no one cares so it's almost like the selection for that answered that negative voice in your head that you were trying to silence through competition wins. Yeah, potentially. Yeah. But it became a really different focus.

My focus on me was now do the best you can for your partner. Because what would upset me more than anything else in the world is if they turned around and went, I really hated that experience. I wish I'd danced with someone else. I would have been mortified. So I was really trying to just make the best experience for my partner. And then we rolled in seventh one and we rolled in the third one. So I calmed down a bit in that regard.

And, you know, just generally, and then, and then had, you know, gained the work with Brucey, et cetera, et cetera, and all that. And a different sort of, you know, life changes as you guys will experience. I don't know if you ever did the clubs old school sort of thing and then and then suddenly become a famous television comic you know things change and then you know you get a bit older i met hannah etc etc and then yeah i was a sort of different guy different focus and perspective on life so it worked out timing timing wise what you're saying is if strictly hadn't come along you'd still be out

there competing i'll still be absolutely i can't use some words because i'm bad at something how would that behavior manifest would you be rude to people or would you like sulk after losing or how would how would it manifest that i wasn't great i wasn't a great loser loser. The thing that's upset me more than anything else was dancing badly. You can't help the mark. So if somebody beats you, you sort of presume they were great. My attitude was don't watch them. For example, if I'm in the final, let's say you have six couples,

you're trying to make the final, and I miss out, and I'm in the semifinal. Don't watch the final because you'll look at people and go, he's terrible. What's he doing over there? He's awful. What state am I in? I can't believe that. Well, that's purgatory.

Don't do that. Just leave it. Just claim that it was the greatest final you'd ever seen in your life. And I was so close. You know, so I would, and it still upsets me now really, is just dancing badly so i'm on stage

i'm performing i can't i hate it when it's bad so i have to work at it you know and i spend you know time and effort and um and the determination of being as good as i can be remains do you see that any of those instincts in your children at five and a half. Yeah. You do. Oh, yeah. Henrietta likes things to be so. Yeah. And if she's wanting to show you something, you have to give it full concentration.

She's quite frustrated. George, if George wants to tell you something and Henrietta interrupts him or you try and interrupt him or whatever it is, he's really frustrated. So I see a level of frustration in children that I can see. I go, hello. Yeah. We'll have to talk about that. I can see that.

As Moana once said, I see what's happening here. So it is interesting, but they are, Hannah and I, we do look at the children and they do certain things. And we do have that, I think all parents do, where they go, that's you, that is. Yeah. That's you, that is.

And very few of the bad men have your turn, that's me, randomly. And have they shown any interesting dance thing? Yeah, love it. They love the show as well yeah love watching the show henriette is very good at understanding the couples george just watches the show as an overview she's really into the couples she knows the couples she likes uh tyler and diane and she likes um uh richie and ganni. She liked them, you know. And so she knows Giovanni as well because, you know, Giovanni and I have been on tour and stuff.

So she likes Giovanni. And so it's very, it's really, and George as well, it's really interesting. It's funny actually with children. They say things to you. I was in a car the other day. Let me find out this thing that she said to me. If you have a two-letter word like pharmacy, and there's two letters in the beginning of the word that come together

to make another sound, do you know what that's called? No. Is it a trigraph or something? No. I didn't know what it was called. I didn't even know they had a word for it. Yeah. And we're sat in the car outside the pharmacy,

and Hannah went in, and we said, and she's trying to say the word pharmacy i said pharmacy darling the ph makes an f yeah and she goes oh daddy that's a such and such a high let me find out what that is a diagraph diagraph diagraph yeah i thought it was triagraph diagraph i've heard them knocking around in the old phonics newsletters we've been getting i'm the class rep so i'm sort of down with this kind of stuff, actually. Yeah, whatever. And I Googled it just to make sure, and she was absolutely right.

Look, I doubted her. I haven't really heard you. He doubted you. I have the audacity to Google to check up on my brother and daughter of a word I'd never heard of because I think she's got it wrong. Oh yeah, nice. Oh yeah, Dad. My suggestion is don't get

involved in the homework, Daddy. Well, are you tempted to go because we're going to talk about your book The Ballroom Blitz. Are you tempted to go, how do I not know that? I'm a Sunday Times best-selling novelist and you're a five and a half year old. We're a Sunday Times best-selling novelist as well, a five and a half year old. We're Sunday Times bestselling novelists as well, Rob.

We didn't know either. We're not novelists. But, you know. Authors. Authors. How many books have you done now? Is it like five or six now? That's the fifth. That's the fifth one in the novels. And I've done a couple of other books as well. Learn to Dance.

Sort of teaching about dancing. Books about dancing books of books about dancing but um this this is the fifth in the uh in the in the novels in the continuing saga although they are standalone so uh you i don't know if you read the the jack reaches the lee charlotte yeah they're brilliant you read them because they're great and he has this one main character who goes through all the books but each book

is a stand up although you understand there's a good story and the same with these books I was inspired by that in this regard

because I didn't want people to feel obliged because once you get to five if people haven't read one they're like oh I'm out

I'm out I'm too far it's like me with the Sopranos like because I wasn't there from the start I'm like 63 hours of TV I'm out. I'm too far. It's like me with The Sopranos. Like, because I wasn't there from the start. I'm like 63 hours of TV. I'm never going.

It's too big a thing. Do you know what I mean? So these novels are all standalone. So even if you haven't read any of the others, you can read this one and you'll be fine. It'll be absolutely fun because they're just great novels. the backdrop. I mean, this one's set during... 1940 during the Blitz. 1940 with the Blitz. It's a hefty size,

isn't it? It's a beauty, yeah. I mean, that'll keep the door open. A couple of diagraphs in there of it. Oh, a plenty. And it's a continuous cover of the

Buckingham Hotel and the ballroom there, but all the shenanigans of the upstairs and downstairs of the hotel, all the people in the hotel, and obviously what's going on during the blips, and the bigger story of the war going on in Europe. So it is a great read, even if

I say so myself. Are you fascinated by that as a time? I am, actually. Yeah, I am. Because when I started, I said the first one I did was 1936. I'm fascinated by the first part. It's the last century anyway. It was such a quick... I mean, we started the century with Queen Victoria.

And by the time we get to the 50s, we're almost into our fourth monarch. In not too distant future, we've got a man on the moon. And we started by you know lighting the street lamps by candle light you know it's the expediency of the change of time i mean we have about four five minutes in two weeks currently yeah um and it's a book out now books out now and so you've done 1936 193736. So this is 1940. If you continue doing these books for long enough, you'll get to the point where it strictly exists. I'll be speaking about the first series of Strictly Come Dancing.

Yeah. But the thing about these books, where they're set in real lifetimes, is you're not allowed to rewrite history. That's the thing. You can't go. And in 1942, it was May 1942, and Raymond,

our intrepid hero, went to Germany and shot Hitler. And the world was a better place. As much as we'd like that to have happened, it can't actually happen.

But if I write about Strictly Come Dancing in the future, I will write that I won one. So... I think that would be a great book. You'd be quite entitled to the Strictly I won and just like the fictional funny story. With you, we've talked about like,

obviously with Strictly and with the books as well, there's the Anton Dubac kind of feel of this kind of old schools the showbiz the kind of the classiness does that come into the home life i mean we can see you're sat in front of uh some lovely curtains you've got you've got fresh flowers behind you it's wonderful we should take a screenshot to share on Instagram so people can see, but it looks like a five-star hotel. How do you combine that with young children?

Oh, you keep them out of the room. Is this just one beautiful locked-off shot and then the rest of the house is absolute car. This is one of those things you get on the computers, on the things. Everybody probably has it.

I don't know. We're fortunate enough to have a few rooms. We've got, when we bought the house, we bought it as a sort of a forever home because we got a bit of space. We live out in Buckinghamshire. So we've got a nice size space. We live, you know, out in Buckinghamshire, so we've got a nice-sized garden. We inherited this wonderful garden as well. And, you know, in the house we have a dining room,

a separate dining room as well, but we've turned it into a children's room, so the children's room. So they have a room of their own. The house, apart from the main living room, which is quite a nice-sized living room, the rest of the house is, and the children's got their room, the rest of the house is in the children's room. The rest of the house, the children can do what they do.

Hannah works from home in the office at the end there. So it's okay. We don't have toys all over the house. But you've got one. Is that living room off limits? This one is the off limits room, really. Obviously, you can come in. We allow you to come in for half an hour a day.

Let's not bring everything in with you. Leave it in the children's room. The children's room, you have all the toys you want in there. I mean, I had a thing like last year. Hannah and the children went away for a week. I was working, so I had to stay here. They went away on holiday for a week with Granny and Grandad. We've got the garage.

The garage has become a dumping ground. So what I did is I got a skip. Yep. You ever do this? I got a skip in the drive. Yeah. And the children's room, I couldn't see the floor in the children's room.

Yeah. And the garage, I couldn't get in. Just with crap. So I went in and I turfed all this stuff out. Garage was lovely, children's room was all gorgeous I did a bit of tidying up I literally filled the skip

with stuff they came back, no one noticed no amazing the suggestion we've got too much stuff springs to mind and I'm that's really and i'm on the verge of doing it again actually i'm just going to find a way of doing it you're also super

well turned out and the ways that like even you know even like when you're down clothes today looks very it's very smart three quarter length zip nice jumper how about the kids are they are they like in you know smart clothes going out and about or do you just let them track a tracksuit on and stumble out of the house? Yeah, the children are great. They're very funny, actually. George is very clothes conscious, funnily enough. Yeah. And Rara, I said Rara.

Rara, Henrietta, we call Rara. When they were little and George was just starting to speak, he couldn't say Henrietta. He used to call her Rara. So that became her nickname. So she loves a pretty dress. Daddy. He used to call her Rara. So that became her nickname. So she loves a pretty dress. Daddy, I want to wear a pretty dress.

So darling, it's a bit cold outside. Can I only wear these trousers? Daddy, I want a pretty dress. Okay, so we'll get the tights going and the pretty dress is going. Card is going. So, but they're pretty good. George is very conscious of colour coordination, which is amazing. He likes things to go.

It's really interesting. I love that because that sounds like me. What about Hannah? Is she similar to you with want stuff to look sort of very neat and presentable and smart and stuff, or is she a bit more casual? Yes, to a degree. She's less sort of, you know, Hannah's always has a bit more for the country than I am.

So she has a bit more of the – what's the expression once used, which made me go like that? Oh, I'm not sure I can do that. Functional. Oh, functional. That is not Anton. Oh, that sounds like agent provocateur meets millet. Oh, I can't imagine you ever going out and anything creased.

Are you a big ironer, Anton? Yeah, iron and starch. If it gets anywhere near me, it's going to be starched at some stage. I do like that. So do you starch yourself or do you get people to starch for you? Or do you do it perfectly? I do do it perfectly. I spend a long time doing it.

I tend to have it done. If I have an emergency, I'm happy to starch myself. When was your last starch emergency, Anton? Oh, the weekend show day. I had to, one of my dress shirts wasn't done properly, so I had to emergency redo. But I'm a great prepper of clothes. I have everything prepped and ready.

You know what they do when you turn up for stuff, show stuff, and they go, what are you going to be wearing? And you go, oh, we'll take that and prep that for you. No, no, no worries, Tom. No, no, no. No, no, don't. No, no, oh, no.

Oh, no, don't be touching it now. Oh, no, no. It's fine. No, it's, oh, no, don't take it out of there. You're going to steam it, you say. No, no, let's not do that. Give it out of there. You're going to steam it, you say. No, no, let's not do that. Give it back to me. That's the opposite of me, whereas I see it as the opportunity

to finally get something ironed. That's what I do. I'll take three shirt options, and I'll go iron all three, and I'll decide. And I go in with two ironed shirts. It's an absolute win. What do you wear for a school run, Anton? School run's great.

We both do the school run. We've got a lovely nanny as well that we have who's terrific. We just started a couple of months ago. And because I've been out on tour and, you know, it's been busy. And Hannah's having to work from home and she works a little bit,

a fair amount with the US as well. So for time reasons and stuff. So for safety, Mr. and Mrs. Dubik, George is still at school. Yes, we know. You couldn't just keep him there a bit longer, would you? No, no, it's 7 o'clock. Oh, yeah. No idea.

I'll be with you shortly. So for safety, we've got, and she does a lot of the school runs, but just in case we can't do it. But we like to do them, and don't mind. What do you wear, Anton? Do you ever just put on jogging bottoms for the school run? Oh, no, dear. I thought you said jogging bottom, then.

Got iron jeans and a polo shirt? That's what I'm guessing, something like that. Oh, there has to be some element of cashmere. Certainly this time of year. And do you wear shorts? You're a shorts wearer. Oh, in the summer, yeah. Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, I wouldn't wear it this year. I don't think it's necessary. Yeah, I've got lovely legs, though. Don't worry about that. Of course. I've got a very powerful thigh and I have a

I have a ponch on for a short short as well I won't do it remember the 80s Ben Hoddle short in the 80s yeah

I'm not afraid to pop a pair of them on that's a lovely image for 9am on the school run and do your kids do you match sport or afternoon clubs

anything like that yeah no we do always everything I like to get and do everything I like to get and do things together the school run. And do your kids do much sport or afternoon clubs or anything like that? Yeah, no, we do always everything. I like to get them to do everything. I like to get them to do things together. So if George is playing football, I like Henrietta to get in there and play the football as well. And they do

football camps. We've got half-time moments. They're all doing camps this week. So football camps and rugby camps and tennis camps and take them to the golf club and do some golf and they both swim. My six-year-old's refused to do every club. She just said, nope, doesn't want to do anything.

Yeah, and they're good because they're quite outdoorsy. As I say, we live in a country, so they're good and outdoorsy. Riding bikes, all the stuff we used to do as well. Lovely. But then that's what I was like for me growing up, being out and doing all the stuff, playing all the playing just play every sport cricket football less so rugby surprise all that sort of stuff tennis we used to play all the sports when i was growing up and i was i enjoyed it i was quite good at all sport i was very sporty and quite sort of good at all sports

so and that's what we lived for when i was growing up. Yeah. And fortunately, our children are the same. It's been a genuine pleasure to talk to you, Anton. I've got the finale question. The finale question. Which we ask all of our guests. Before also, we should say before the thing, I said,

well, we're going to talk about your book. And you said, it's a brilliant book and it's not just Richard Osman that sells books these days. And I thought, he's going to do the hard sell here.

But do you want to do a bit of the hard sell? Well, I don't know if you need it. It's such a good book. That's perfect. What's interesting, when I was approached by my publisher originally about writing a book, I had this story in my head and I wanted to write a spy novel.

I've actually written, and I didn't know I'd written this, which is a surprise to me, but I was nominated for a Historical Romantic Novel of the Year award, which was a delight, but it soon put to bed any ideas that I was a spy novelist. Turns out I'm not. Thank you so much, Anton. The final question is, we ask everyone this,

what's the one thing that your partner does that really frustrates you when they're parenting and then what's the one thing that Hannah does where you're like oh she's unbelievable that's amazing

I have to be I'm going to be genuine now there's nothing really in this regard that really annoys me about Hannah isn't that isn't that

annoying I know it's true it's true she It's true. She is, I have to say, she is practically perfect in every way. She's the most incredible mum. Do you know what she is? She's everything I thought she would be.

And we've both come to having children later in life. And I knew her, obviously, before we had children. It wasn't the first thing we did. And I thought she'd be an excellent mum. I thought, oh, she'd be a great mum. I always knew she wanted to have children. I thought, oh, isn't it funny? Because she couldn't have children.

I thought, oh, isn't it funny? Nature works in mysterious ways. The person that I think would be an incredible mum can't have children. That's the sad irony of it all. And anyway, it's well documented. We had IVF, so we were able to have an idiot. And she's turned out to be exactly the mum I thought she would be.

Absolutely brilliant. I'm thrilled for me, because I'd have a hundred of them, by the way, because I absolutely love it. Love it. But I'm really thrilled for Hannah way, because I absolutely love it. Love it. But I'm really thrilled for Hannah because she is amazing at it. How long did it take?

You're comfortable talking about the IVF process. Yeah, yeah, for sure. How long did it take to come through? We were enormously fortunate. We had one gun, but it was sort of boot camp. We really did hardcore at it. And so it was really hard on Hannah. Well, I understand the process the process is the process and it it can be really um hard at the end of the day from

describing his boot camp I mean your blood tests every day injections every day and it really is really difficult and I think some people do have an easier time of it, don't quite have to go through. But we did it that way because, as the doctor described, Hannah, she was a geriatric mother. Wow. They're brave doctors, aren't they? I like the way you did that down the phone. Probably a landline. But so, you know, just all of that really.

And it's just wonderful that it happened. And she, you know, because Hannah as well had endometriosis, which is a big sort of thing for women, certainly. And something that isn't spoken about very much. And I think she should do something like this to talk about it really, because you know, it's like with all these things, men's health,

women's health, the one thing everybody feels about it is they're the only person suffering from it, whatever it is. When you hear somebody in the public eye or that you know of talk about something that you have, it makes you go, if they get it,

you know, and then you go, well, what happened to them? And then you, and it's sharing is, you know, as my children say, sharing is caring. And it's, I think it's a great thing. And I think she should do something about it because, you know, it's been a thing for her, for her life. Yeah, of course. And had you sort of resolved yourself as a couple that you weren't going to

have kids then at some stage? Potentially. Well, potentially. But, you know, once we went, okay, IVF it is, let's go for it. And then Bosh went straight into it. But we're like that. If we make a decision to do something, we just go and do it. We don't do it right.

In 18 months' time, we're going to do this. All right, you're done. I have come home on a number of occasions to find various things like extra dogs, a cat we're getting a cat sorry Daniel I thought you said we're getting a cat yeah we're getting a cat

are we thinking about getting a cat are we discussing the prospect of maybe getting a cat or are you essentially telling me that you've booked an appointment with the breeder and we're going to go and pick a cat up and have you got a cat we've got a cat i think also we found the thing that annoys anton yeah we got there in the end cheers anton that was amazing good luck with the book and the rest of strictly i think you're in panto in bromley or did i make that wrongly yeah jack

yeah i'll have to come down well yeah get tickets for that buy the book and yeah Anton it's been an absolute pleasure thank you so much thanks so much Anton you're a legend

well done lads cheers thanks mate