Len Goodman signs £3m megadeal to return to US version of Strictly, Dancing with the Stars
Judge tempted back after hit show tanked without him
STRICTLY judge Len Goodman is quick-stepping it to the bank after earning more than £3million.
The former welder, 72, managed to waltz through negotiations with American TV executives to return with to US version Dancing with the Stars with a massive new pay deal.
He joins the growing trend of “Twilight Tycoons” who like Bake Off star Mary Berry, 81, are making fortunes after passing 65.
A friend said: “Len genuinely wanted to take a step back and enjoy a bit more free time. But he still has the energy of a man half his age so he thought why not. And the money is a bonus.”
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Accounts filed by Len’s company Pleasurable Pursuits show he has £3.3million cash in the bank - up £900,000 from last year.
He announced his retirement from the US version of Strictly last August to spend more time with his grandson.
But the show struggled without him and producers have coaxed him back with a huge pay rise that is set to earn him hundreds of thousands of pounds more.
Len was running a dance school in Dartford, Kent, working just two days a week when the BBC signed him up to be a judge.
He revealed: “It’s changed my life. A car picks me up, takes me to the studio. I say a few things like ‘Keep your head up.’
“They pay me loads of money and then they drive me home again. What a job!
“It certainly beats working on the docks, which is what I was doing when I was 17. Aren’t I lucky?”