Oti Mabuse reveals she starts her working day at 2am

Oti Mabuse has said she sometimes starts her working day at 2am.

The Strictly Come Dancing professional won the show with Emmerdale actor Kelvin Fletcher in 2019 and this year is paired with comedian Bill Bailey.

She told Women’s Health UK: “I was up at three in the morning today and just started working.

“I get like that when I’m in work mode: when I’m really going for it … sometimes, I’ll start working at two in the morning and then I’ll go back to bed (for a bit) and start working again at 8am.”

The dancer, who was also one of the stars of BBC One’s The Greatest Dancer, praised the diversity on Strictly and said: “When I look at the shows I’ve worked for, they’ve been so diverse.

“On Strictly, we have 17 professional dancers who all look completely different – they represent something unique, with (dancers) from Australia, New York, South Africa, and China.

“I’m proud that we have that representation.

She also said she had been moved by the Netflix drama Hollywood, created by Ryan Murphy and starring Laura Harrier, and said: “You see someone (lead actress) who looks like you, with big full lips, and she’s not shown as ‘the angry black woman’.

“She’s the one who works hard, she’s ambitious, she gets what she wants, and that’s just amazing to see. We’re not always angry – we’re vulnerable and we have emotions.”

Mabuse said she takes inspiration from motivational speaker and author Tony Robbins, which helps her with her mindset, adding: “It keeps me in check and makes tough situations a little less tough and (helps me) approach them with a little more awareness.

“And I think once you’re aligned – your head and your mind and your heart and your soul – then you can feel good, then you can be creative.

“And my job relies on me to be strong and to definitely be creative.”

– The full interview with Oti Mabuse is in the December/January issue of Women’s Health, on sale from November 4 and also available as a digital edition.