Strictly stars partied till 3am hours before they were due on stage after tour bosses rented out floor of posh hotel
STRICTLY Come Dancing stars partied until 3am — hours before they were due on stage for their tour.
EastEnders star Bobby Brazier, 20, and former Corrie actress Ellie Leach, 22, were among those celebrating the live show’s launch in front of an 8,000-strong audience.
Bosses splashed out £3,000 on hiring the entire mezzanine floor at the Malmaison hotel in Birmingham on Friday night following the opener at the city’s Utilita Arena.
The cast were treated to a three-course dinner of steak and sea bass before tucking into a private bar stocked with beer and cocktails — and strutting their stuff to tunes played on a phone.
An onlooker said: “They’d spent all evening dancing at the Arena but that didn’t stop them. The hotel bar had completely closed and all of the guests were in bed but they were still going at 3am.
“They didn’t have a DJ but made the most of the party by plugging their phone into the wall, playing music and dancing around that.”
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Despite their late-night session, the Strictly team were back on stage at 2.30pm yesterday for a matinée, then a second show at 7pm.
One matinée audience member said: “They all looked great and put on a brilliant and professional show.”
The cast include host Janette Manrara, plus judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke.
Bobby is partnered by Dianne Buswell and Ellie by Vito Coppola.
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Also there were Angela Rippon with Kai Widdrington, with Carlos Gu, Annabel Croft with Graziano Di Prima, Krishnan Guru-Murthy with Jowita Przystal, and Layton Williams with Nikita Kuzmin.
Fans waited for four hours from 8am, despite temperatures of just 3C, to catch a glimpse of Bobby and favourites such as Katya Jones.
Meanwhile, TV winner Ellie revealed her father had fixed her Glitterball Trophy after its delicate writing snapped off.
She said: “He took it into the shed, he brought it back, and now it is the centrepiece of the dining table.”
She added: “I think after the tour, I will keep a pair of shoes as a little memory.”
In her hotel room following the live show, Ellie said she felt “overwhelmed” after the series.
She posted: “I think that it is just a change, I don’t know what it is, obviously it is not something I am used to. Yesterday was an amazing experience and I am really, really excited to be doing the tour.”
