Len Goodman is the "King of ‘Strictly’".
The 72-year-old professional ballroom dancer made his final appearance on the popular BBC One dance competition ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ on Sunday (18.12.16) after being head judge on the show for 12 years, and the straight-talking critique has been hailed as television’s royalty by co-host Claudia Winkleman.
Speaking in a documentary ‘Strictly Len Goodman’, which is set to air on Friday (23.12.16), the 44-year-old presenter said: "Len is the king of all things ballroom and basically the king of ‘Strictly’. Everyone totally respects him.
"He is a master, so everyone totally respects him, both on front of camera but also backstage.
"So if Len wanders down and goes, ‘Yeah, it was a good lift’, everyone goes, ‘Oh, Len liked it’, because he is unfailingly honest but also incredibly knowledgeable."
And fellow host Tess Daly, 47, who previously helmed the programme alongside Sir Bruce Forsyth, has described the Bromley-born star as the head of the ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ family.
The blonde beauty said: "As far as Strictly is concerned, Len is the daddy."
And Tess – who has presented the show since it first aired in 2004 – has admitted it has been "such a treat" for her to work alongside Len over the years and to be greeted with the "cheeky little glint" in his eye every week.
She explained: "There’s so many favourite Len moments, just working with him every week is such a treat, you know that little sparkle in his eye, that cheeky little glint he has.
"I love watching him dance when he comes onto the show at the beginning when we introduce him and he interacts with the audience, he’s high fiving them, he’s gliding past them, jiving up a storm."
Len Goodman is the ‘King’ of Strictly Come Dancing
