Strictly Come Dancing star Johannes Radebe has praised his former dance parter Annabel Croft after they bonded over grief during their time on the show last year.
The former tennis ace, 57, was widowed after her husband of 30 years Mel Coleman died from cancer in May 2023, while Johannes, 36, was struggling during the series after the loss of his cousin who took their own life.
They made it all way to the semi final and are still firm friends with Annabel supporting the dancer at the launch of his House of Jojo tour at the London Palladium on Saturday.
Speaking to The Mirror at the event Johannes said: ‘Strictly can be hard because you never know what is going to happen’. I was dreading it because it’s six months and you don’t know who you will be paired with’.
Before adding: ‘But then I was paired with this wonderful woman. Not only did Annabel make sure I was OK emotionally, her family also opened their doors to me’.
Strictly Come Dancing star Johannes Radebe, 36, has praised his former dance parter Annabel Croft, 57, after they bonded over grief during their time on the show last year (pictured on Saturday)
The former tennis ace was widowed in May 2023 after her husband of 30 years Mel Coleman died from cancer , while Johannes was struggling during the series loss of his cousin who took their own life (pictured on Strictly in December)
Earlier this year Joahnnes admitted that he he nearly quit the show after he was paired with Annabel.
He said he wasn’t happy with the producers partnering choice as while Annabel was coming to terms with the death of her husband while he was also also dealing with his own grief.
Speaking on the Table Manners podcast Johannes confessed that at first he was confused by the producers decision and even toyed with the idea of asking not to have a partner that year.
He explained: ‘When they said I’m dancing with her, I was like, What are they trying to achieve? And I say that because two weeks before I started, I buried my cousin who committed suicide.
‘I didn’t feel anything, I wasn’t as excited as I normally would be, because I was like, this is supposed to be the most exciting period, I’ve just come back off a very successful tour. But I had to then go home [South Africa].
He continued: ‘I could have stayed out there for longer but after we buried him, I had to fly back to the UK and do my audiobook.
‘That was hard, and when Strictly started, I was just like, “Okay, just felt like I was going through the motions.”
He explained: ‘When they said I’m dancing with her, I was like, What are they trying to achieve? And I say that because two weeks before I started, I buried my cousin who committed suicide.
Johannes said: ‘I was paired with this wonderful woman. Not only did Annabel make sure I was OK emotionally, her family also opened their doors to me’
Annabel’s husband Mel died in May 2023 of colon cancer just 16 weeks after he was diagnosed and throughout the competition the sportswoman paid tribute to just how much Johannes had helped her (pictured June 2022)
Earlier this year Joahnnes admitted that he he nearly quit the show after he was paired with Annabel
‘I didn’t feel anything, I wasn’t as excited as I normally would be, because I was like, this is supposed to be the most exciting period, I’ve just come back off a very successful tour. But I had to then go home [South Africa].
He continued: ‘I could have stayed out there for longer but after we buried him, I had to fly back to the UK and do my audiobook.
‘That was hard, and when Strictly started, I was just like, “Okay, just felt like I was going through the motions.”
‘So you can imagine when they said the partners I was just like “ok great”. I just really wanted to deal with it but you never allow yourself the time to deal with whatever you are going through in your life.
‘And yeah, they said we think that you’re the person to partner with this woman. I just said to myself, they’re reaching. I remember calling my agent, I was like, I don’t know what’s going to happen. Maybe we should say that I shouldn’t get a partner this year because I just really need some time out.’
However, despite being concerned about how Annabel’s heartache would affect his own, the pair became best pals during the process.
‘I mean, a lot of people say, “Oh Johannes, you helped Annabel” but no, Annabel helped me,’ he said.
