The star of some of British television’s most critically acclaimed and best loved shows, Craig Kelly brings charm, wit and handsome good looks to the nation’s screens.

Currently residing on Corrie, the nation’s favourite Street, heartthrob Craig has the Weatherfield ladies falling at his feet.

For over a decade, Mancunian Craig has been winning praise for his roles in multi award winning drama series, from Queer as Folk to Hotel Babylon. He now looks forward to the “huge adventure” that is Strictly Come Dancing, bringing a touch of macho Manchester sex appeal to the ballroom.

Craig was born in Lytham St Annes in Lancashire in 1970. He's appeared in some of the biggest shows on British television, becoming a household name playing Vince in the critically acclaimed Channel 4 series, Queer as Folk - written by Russell T Davies.

However, before hitting it big on the small screen, Craig had appeared in the blockbuster movie Titanic opposite Leonardo di Caprio and Kate Winslet.

Craig’s Northern vowels can be heard in many places, as he’s one of the UK’s most popular voice-over performers, on programmes such as Channel 4’s Shipwrecked: Battle of the Islands.

Why did you agree to take part in Strictly?

"Last year I watched the series and said it was the only show like this I would appear on. And here I am!

It looks like a lot of fun and like a huge adventurous challenge and I was a fan of the show for many years. My wife Camilla thought that it would be great for future moves on the dance floor!

I’ve got absolutely no past experience in dancing, the only dancing I have ever done is after a few beers at a disco. We didn’t do a first dance at our wedding - we were going to do a last dance instead but they shut the venue down before we got round to it!"

Flavia Cacace

Flavia is 30 years old and a petite 5’2”. Her professional partner is Vincent Simone. They have been dancing together for 13 years, and turned professional in 2001. Flavia’s speciality is Ten Dance/Argentine Tango.

Flavia was born in Naples in Southern Italy, but moved to Guildford in Surrey with her family when she was four. Her mum, Rosaria is a housewife, and her father, Roberto, is a retired chef.

Flavia and Vincent have been extremely successful on the competition circuit since starting to dance together thirteen years ago. They performed in places such as Singapore, Canada and Japan, before turning professional. Series 4 was Flavia’s first appearance on Strictly Come Dancing as a regular dancer.

Flavia on Strictly

In Series 4, Flavia was paired with comic legend Jimmy Tarbuck, who unfortunately had to bow out with ill-health.

For Series 5, Flavia’s partner Matt di Angelo started out nervously and was a little embarrassed to show what he could do, but he promised Flavia he would get her to the final and he didn’t break that promise. They came second, losing out to Alesha and Matthew. "Making the final alone made me as happy as if we’d won".

Last year, Flavia was partnered with actor Phil Daniels, unfortunately leaving the competition after their first dance in the very first week of the competition.

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