Jonnie Peacock says some ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ contestants need "a little shot" of alcohol before hitting the dance floor.
The Paralympian appeared on the BBC Latin and ballroom dance competition in 2017 with dance partner Oti Mabuse, and has said that whilst he was "mostly sober" during the live shows, there were a few times where he needed a drink to help him get through the nerve-wracking performances.
He said: "At the time, I didn’t even dance when I was out and pretty drunk, so to go out and do it sober – or mostly sober – in front of quite a few people was quite tricky."
And when asked to clarify what he meant by "mostly", the 25-year-old star said many contestants in the past have needed some Dutch courage before the live shows.
He added: "Maybe occasionally [I had a drink]. We had a Christmas special, that was a fun one. We didn’t have to worry too much about remembering steps, so we could go for it.
"The producers did tell us a couple of stories [afterwards]. I think with some people, they could smell the breath just before they went out for the show and they got a little bit panicked when they started forgetting steps! But, maybe a little shot doesn’t hurt."
Jonnie was voted off the competition during the Blackpool Tower special in week nine of the series, but says he still had a "great" time.
He said: "For me, it was great fun, it was an incredible experience and an incredibly scary one too. But I made some great memories and met some great people and just had fun."
And despite not being crowned victorious, the loss of the top spot hasn’t put him off trying his hand at other reality shows, as he says he won’t rule out any future opportunities.
When asked by HuffPost UK if he would ever appear on any other reality shows or competitions, he said: "I’m not sure about that. [But] I like to live by crossing each bridge as I come to it, so who knows what the future will hold?"
Jonnie Peacock says Strictly Come Dancing contestants drink before live shows
