Meet Richie Anderson: Strictly Come Dancing 2022 contestant

The Strictly Come Dancing 2022 songs and dances have now been revealed, and Richie will be doing a Samba to Hakuna Matata from The Lion King

But will it be the roaring performance he hopes for?

The radio presenter has Molly Rainford to beat, as she currently sits at the top of the Strictly Come Dancing leaderboard.

Read on for everything you need to know about Richie Anderson - one of the contestants in the Strictly Come Dancing 2022 line-up.

Who is Richie Anderson?

Age: 34

Job: Broadcaster

Instagram: @iamritchieanderson

Twitter: @ritchie_anderson

Anderson began his broadcasting career on BBC WM, then joined BBC Radio Two as the channel's weekday travel reporter in 2019, appearing on Zoe Ball and Ken Bruce's shows. He has also presented reports for The One Show, including one film which saw him come out to his football teammates as part of a discussion about homophobia in sport.

Richie's Strictly journey

Scoreboard

Week 1: Cha Cha Cha (5+5+6+7) = 23

Week 2: Quickstep (8+8+8+8) = 32

Tying with fellow contestants Jayde Adams and Kym Marsh, Richie's 23 points in Week 1 placed him in the middle of the Strictly Come Dancing 2022 leaderboard - putting him in good stead for the coming weeks.

After dancing a fun Cha Cha Cha routine with Giovanni to Wham!'s I'm Your Man, Richie told his Instagram fans: "Thank you Gio for being the best teacher over the past fortnight. Plenty of feedback from the judges to take on board, can’t wait to get back in the training room."

Week 2 was a very good week for Richie, who scored 32 points for his Quickstep to Dancin' Fool by Barry Manilow.

This was the second highest score for Week 2 behind Molly Rainford, who scored 34 points for her Quickstep to Love on Top by Beyoncé.

What has Richie said about joining Strictly?

Anderson was speaking with RadioTimes.com and other press ahead of the new season starting when he revealed that he was given the option of whether he wanted to dance with a man or woman when he was asked to appear on the show.

He revealed: "They said, 'We're booking you and it's up to you whether you want to dance with a man or woman.' And I went home and I spoke to my other half, and this year is our 10-year anniversary.

"And he was like, 'You've got to do it. You've got to go out there and dance with a man,' and he said, 'How would you feel, you know, throwing one of the women up in the air? You'd probably injure them.'

"So it was a no brainer, really. It's such an honour and watching John [Whaite] and Johannes [Radebe] last year and Nicola [Adams] and Katya [Jones] the year before – they were majestic."

Anderson went on to talk about how "inspired" he was by John and Johannes and Nicola and Katya's partnerships on the show, with the former couple becoming runners-up in 2021 and the latter having to withdraw due to a COVID-19 diagnosis in 2020.

Anderson said: "I wish for me as a gay teenager growing up, I would have had that representation on television. I wish when I was growing up I could have switched on primetime television on a Saturday night and saw two men dancing together. And it's honestly inspired me – John and Johannes and Nicola and Katya are one of the reasons I'm doing it this year, I'm so inspired by them."

Strictly Come Dancing continues on Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One. Find something to watch with our TV Guide or visit our Entertainment hub for all the latest news.

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