Lauren May Oakley (born 28 February 1991) is an English professional dancer and choreographer, best known for appearing as a professional on the BBC One television series Strictly Come Dancing.
Early life
Oakley was born on 28 February 1991 in Birmingham, England.[1][2] She began dancing at the age of 2 and began competing in Ballroom and Latin dance at the age of 7.[1]
Career
Oakley became Juvenile Champion at the Blackpool Dance Festival, winning across both Ballroom and Latin disciplines and also became Under 21 British National Champion before beginning a career on stage.[3] She has toured the world as part of the live dance show Burn the Floor and has starred as the "leading lady" in the national tour Him & Me alongside Giovanni Pernice and Anton Du Beke.[4][5][6] and has starred in Pernice's solo tour This Is Me.[7][8]
Strictly Come Dancing
In July 2022, Oakley was announced to be joining the twentieth series of Strictly Come Dancing as a professional, along with Vito Coppola, Carlos Gu, and Michelle Tsiakkas.[9] Upon her appointment as a professional, Oakley said "[She had] grown up watching Strictly, always hoping that one day [she] could be part of the best show on television, doing what [she loves] the most. Now that it’s happening, it doesn’t quite seem real. I can’t wait to start this new sequined adventure and join this incredible family."[1][10] Oakley did not partner a celebrity for her first series, and instead took part in the professional group routines.
The following year, she was paired with presenter and journalist Krishnan Guru-Murthy for the twenty-first series. They were eliminated in the eighth week of the competition after losing the dance off to Angela Rippon and Kai Widdrington.
Oakley returned for the twenty-second series and did not receive a celebrity partner. She danced however, with JLS singer JB Gill in the show's seventh week, standing in for an ill Amy Dowden.[11] The following Monday it was confirmed that Oakley would partner Gill for the remainder of the series, as Dowden withdrew from the series due to a foot injury.[12] The couple reached the final, but ultimately lost out to Chris McCausland and his partner Dianne Buswell.
| Series | Partner | Place | Average Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Krishnan Guru-Murthy | 8th | 26.4 |
| 22 | JB Gill | 2nd | 35.6 |
Series 21: with celebrity partner Krishnan Guru-Murthy
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' score | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horwood | Mabuse | Ballas | Du Beke | Total | |||
| 1 | Cha-cha-cha / "Boom Shack-A-Lak" | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 22 | No Elimination |
| 2 | Foxtrot / "Love Really Hurts Without You" | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 20 | Safe |
| 3 | Charleston / "Money, Money" | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 30 | Safe |
| 4 | Paso Doble / "By the Way" | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 28 | Safe |
| 5 | Quickstep / "The Lady Is a Tramp" | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 30 | Safe |
| 6 | Viennese waltz / "Kiss from a Rose" | 6 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 27 | Safe |
| 7 | Couple's Choice / "You Can Call Me Al" | 6 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 29 | Safe |
| 8 | Samba / "Bamboléo" | 5 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 25 | Eliminated |
Series 22: with celebrity partner JB Gill
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' score | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horwood | Mabuse | Ballas | Du Beke | Total | |||
| 7 | Couple's Choice / "Uptown Funk", "Treasure", & "24K Magic" | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 39 | Safe |
| 8 | Samba / "Mas que Nada" | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 37 | Safe |
| 9 | Quickstep / "Never Gonna Give You Up" | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 35 | Safe |
| 10 | Charleston / "Yes Sir, That's My Baby" Samba-a-thon / "Conga" — Gloria Estefan & "La Vida Es Un Carnaval" — Celia Cruz |
9 Awarded |
10 7 |
10 extra |
10 points |
39 46 |
Safe |
| 11 | Viennese waltz / "Let's Go Fly a Kite" | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 39 | Safe |
| 12 | Paso Doble / "Requiem for a Tower" Salsa / "Red Alert" |
9 10 |
10 10 |
10 10 |
10 10 |
39 40 |
Safe |
| 13 | Viennese waltz / "Let's Go Fly a Kite" Showdance / "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" Samba / "Mas que Nada" |
10 9 10 |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
40 39 40 |
Runners-Up |
References
- ^ a b c "Four new pros join the show in 2022!". BBC. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
- ^ "Strictly Speaking! Week Four Review - with Lauren Oakley". UK podcasts. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "20 professional dancers confirmed for Strictly Come Dancing series 20, as four new pros join the line-up". BBC. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
- ^ "Lauren Oakley at Burn the Floor". Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "Strictly Come Dancing Unveils Four New Professional Dancers". HuffPost. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "New BBC Strictly Come Dancing pro Lauren Oakley has already danced with two former champions". Birmingham Mail. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "Strictly's Giovanni Pernice pays tribute to his 'leading lady' after amazing news". 12 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "Giovanni Pernice kisses new Strictly pro dancer as he brands her his 'leading lady'". Entertainment Daily. 12 July 2022. Retrieved 14 July 2022.
- ^ "Strictly Come Dancing reveals new professionals joining for 2022". Radio Times. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
- ^ "Strictly Come Dancing 2022: Meet the new Strictly professional dancers!". BBC. 11 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
- ^ Bryant, Tom (28 October 2024). "Strictly star Amy Dowden pulls out of this week's show as BBC issue update". The Mirror. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ Grierson, Jamie (4 November 2024). "Injury forces dancer Amy Dowden to leave this year's Strictly". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 November 2024.
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