Pete Wicks reveals ‘real reason’ he signed up for Strictly Come Dancing and confesses he’s never watched the show

TV star and podcast host Pete Wicks has opened up about not being a Strictly fan until he agreed to take part in the upcoming BBC series.

The former The Only Way Is Essex star will compete this year on Strictly Come Dancing, but has revealed that he was 'the last person to do it'.

Speaking on his 'Stay Relevant' podcast alongside best pal Sam Thompson, Pete explained: "It's the last thing I think anyone would ever think I would do.

"I've never thought about doing it. I've never really watched Strictly. You do like a taster day where I had to see how I got on for an hour with one of the pros."

He added: "And I am going to be honest with you, I went because I was semi-forced by my management and Sam and anyone else obsessed with Strictly.

"And I did the taster and I f***ing loved it. I genuinely loved it."

He's also revealed that Sam's girlfriend Zara McDermott, who appeared on last year's series, was also a huge motivator in Pete signing up to be a part this year.

He told Monday's Lorraine show how the Love Island star was the driving force behind him signing up because "she loves the show."

Speaking to show host Lorraine Kelly, Pete was asked what advice Zara had given him ahead of this year's series.

He replied: "Zara has said to me ..." before Lorraine interjected and he replied: "Zara is kind of the one who pushed me to do it because she loves the show.

"And I was quite honest about the fact I had never actually seen it."

He went on to say it was only when Zara starred on it, he started taking interest.

The comments come as Zara has put her troubling experience on the long-running series - which saw her professional partner Graziano Di Prima axed - to one side.

Giovanni was fired by the BBC following claims he hit, spat at and kicked at his former celebrity partner.

Zara then broke her silence with a lengthy comment on the alleged "physical incidents" - yet it is clear she is still a fan of the over-arching concept of the show.

A source previously told : "Zara is so happy for Pete landing the Strictly gig.

"Her experience on the show was so individual – she hopes no one will go through the same again.

"She knows that Pete will have an amazing time and could even impress the judges, he's incredibly hardworking and a good person, and will thrive in the environment, which can be intense, but he performs best when he's challenged and under pressure.

Pete has also joked he's "petrified" of the new series, as he laughed: "I am like a Ferrari from the waist down, but a Volvo from the waist up.

"The hips are there - I have got hips but nothing else.

"I feel like you need the whole body."