Strictly Come Dancing contestant Lawrence Robb has responded to fellow professional Katya Jones appearing to call him "fit" and has admitted he is happy to embrace his new status as a housewives' heartthrob.
The Emmerdale actor, 34, has gained more than 60,000 followers on Facebook since joining the BBC dance show and has found himself with a growing fanbase of admirers.
Lawrence Robb on Katya Jones' comment
Jones hit the headlines when she was seen appearing to mouth the word "fit" after watching him dance, later claiming she said "fierce". Asked which he thinks he is, Robb said: "I'm feeling fierce and fit!"
He added: "Look, knowing the show, it doesn't matter where you are on the leaderboard, it goes up and down. You want that arc, don't you? Everyone's so lovely and I think the important thing is not to be prescriptive with it, everyone's time here is finite, ultimately. It's just about how much time you have. So let's just have fun with the time you have here, that's the most important thing."
Strictly journey and fan support
Robb, who plays Mackenzie Boyd in the ITV soap, has been supported by viewers at home despite a difficult start to the competition. Last weekend his jive with professional partner Jowita Przystał earned just 19 points due to a series of mistakes, leaving the couple second from bottom on the leaderboard.
Head judge Shirley Ballas warned him: "You've got the potential, you absolutely can be a star, but you can't be making too many mistakes." Despite the disappointing marks, Robb escaped the dance-off thanks to the viewers at home.
He said: "Do you know what, I agree with the judges. I did make a couple of mistakes but I tried my best to maintain it for Jowita's sake, my sake and the dance's sake. It was mentally and physically exhausting but it's such a rush dancing. It's electric. But I genuinely thought I was going to be in the bottom two and dancing again."
Robb said he is not doing the show for the scores, explaining: "I'd love to get higher scores. But ultimately, I'm not doing it necessarily for the scores. I'd like to think I'm doing it for the love of the performance and for everybody else."
Dealing with pressure and training
Despite being used to performing in front of millions on Emmerdale, Robb admitted the pressure of dancing live on Saturday night has left him feeling overwhelmed, saying he can barely remember what happens once he steps off the dance floor.
He said: "For all the dances I've done, I don't remember them! I remember them because you have to do the dance, but if you were to ask me what happened on the dance floor, until I've watched it back, I can't tell you. It's all a blur!"
He added that being judged in front of millions of viewers can make him feel physically sick, saying: "Everyone in the show is doing something that they've never done before live and performing it for the judges and the audience within the studio and nationally. And that's massively daunting, if you think about it too much it probably starts to make you feel a bit sick."
The gruelling training schedule has also left Robb discovering muscles he never knew existed, with aches and pains now part of his daily routine. He said: "I don't think it would be Strictly if there wasn't pain or new niggles. It's consistent pain! But it's a good pain."
He spends his evenings practising at home, although his cramped flat is hardly an ideal rehearsal studio. He said: "My flat isn't very big and the dances require a lot of space. So I can't really do very much. I can do two steps and then I bang into the fridge!"
Robb's partner Pamela Blair, a West End musical theatre actress, has been cheering him on throughout the competition. He joked: "My partner Pam is in musical theatre so she gets it while I'm flailing around like a new born giraffe! She's not really giving me any advice or tips, it's more just enjoy it because it is a once in a lifetime experience."
The couple have also been making trips to a nearby spa for sauna sessions and cold plunges to help him recover from the physical demands of training.
Craig Revel Horwood has identified Robb's acting skills as a potential advantage, with Robb saying: "Craig said in week one that that's my secret weapon so I'm just going with it, to be honest."
Robb and Jowita are set to perform a tango for Strictly's Halloween special this weekend.
