‘Nobody puts Miranda in a corner.’
This year March has really lived up to its reputation as being the ‘mad’ month. From snow storms to snow drops we’ve had it all, but most importantly this month we have celebrated the 25th Red Nose Day, raising £75,107,851 to help transform lives in the UK and Africa.
Dancing and fundraising has always gone hand in hand. Over the last twelve months, people everywhere have been shimmying and shaking for charity, not least Ann Widdecombe and Russell Grant during the Children in Need Strictly Special. Now the nation is once again lacing up their dancing shoes and raising money through school dance-a-thons or doing the Harlem Shake in supermarket car parks. It really does seem that dancing is the magic formula! Indeed the final of Let’s Dance for Comic Relief alone, which saw the Coronation Street actor Anthony Cotton win the trophy for his performance of Anything Goes, raised over £1 million and was viewed by 4.83million people. There has been plenty of dance related frivolity this year. Anthony Cotton was joined by runner up Jodie Pringer, Lee Nelson, Tim Vine, Katherine Ryan and many more in four fantastic episodes of Let’s Dance for Comic Relief. Blue Peter’s Helen Skelton, who made her Strictly debut on the Christmas Special, has also been strutting her stuff starring in two West End Musicals, Stomp and We Will Rock You, in the same evening as part of her Magnificent 7 Challenge.
Dancewear Central has a winner however- Miranda Hart’s Mad March Dirty Dancing routine. To raise money for Comic Relief Miranda has done five challenges in five cities kicking off in Newcastle with an attempt to break the world record for the most armpits waxed in three minutes. Her Strictly Come Dancing evening in the Manchester Town Hall with Strictly professional Pasha Kovalev should have been a doddle after facing down the armpits of twenty rugby players, but after damaging her knee before her challenges even started she required a little help from her co-star Sarah Hadland. This is not the first time Sarah and Miranda have attempted the iconic Patrick Swayze moment but Pasha thankfully, is sturdier than Miranda was at the Disco Karaoke Finals in series 3. Joined by beneficiaries of Comic Relief, Dance Syndrome, and sporting spectacular pink leg warmers Miranda and Sarah create Strictly magic which would have surely stolen the glitter ball right out of Louis Smith’s hands. For those who missed here it is again: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHVoxBY6S5w