Fleur East says losing her dad is the ‘hardest thing she’s ever experienced’

Fleur East had said losing her late father Malcolm was “the hardest thing she’s ever been through” as she dedicates her time to him Strictly.

The singer, 35, describes the “emotional and mental” strain his death placed on her, which she admitted has left a “hole in her life” ever since.

Fleur said nothing will ever be this hard again, which is why after a few setbacks in the competition she tells how she’s “coming back fighting”.

Fleur, who was in the bottom two for the second time on Sunday, looked back on her Strictly experience so far and her father’s death in 2020.

Speaking on her Hits Radio Breakfast Show on Tuesday, Fleur said: “In life there are so many challenges, so many things to face, and I’m going to be 100% honest here, losing my dad in 2020 is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” ever experienced, emotionally, mentally, and there is such a hole in my life since he left.

“The whole reason I’m doing this show is for him, so if the dance-offs are part of my journey, if that’s the challenge, there’s going to be nothing harder than losing my dad. So I’ll pick myself up every time, remind myself why I’m there, keep fighting and come back stronger.”

Elsewhere during the show, Fleur delved deeper into what it’s really like to be part of the dreaded Strictly dance off.

She said, ‘I can’t hide my emotions. I’m just 100% there! When Tess goes ‘and first in the dance is off…’ in your head you go ‘don’t say my name, don’t say my name, not me, not me, not me’ and then she says ‘Fleur en Vito’!

“I was like oh my god and I was moaning audibly. I didn’t even know anyone could hear that! But of course I’m going to moan, I don’t want to be in the dance!

“I enjoy it and I want to be there every week, so if you hear that moaning that’s real, I’m keeping it real!

‘How are you going to react? You don’t go ‘yeah, let’s go, it’s free time!’ You want to continue – that’s what you want to hear.’

Fleur previously revealed that she cried after her second performance, thinking of her beloved father Malcolm who sadly passed away in 2020.

Following her Viennese Waltz with partner Vito Coppola, Fleur was seen wiping tears and telling host Claudia Winkleman that the heavy rehearsals were to blame.

But speaking on her Hits Radio show the following week, she admitted that her uncle thoughtfully wore her late father’s bracelet to the show, causing her to “blumble.”

She said: ‘All day long I tried to make sure I found the right emotion for this dance because I was really worried about going there, being pretty empty and empty and just doing the steps. I really wanted to commit myself to it’.

“But just before we started dancing, I went to my family who were in the audience and my Uncle Sean raised his arm to show me his wrist – and he was wearing my father’s bracelet.”

She continued: “He didn’t even say anything to me, he just showed it to me and that got me thinking. It only took a few seconds for me to perform and everything else and because I was just nervous I started crying, sniffling!’

It came after Fleur said her cousin was going to a psychic medium and they brought a tear-jerking message of happiness from her father, who died of a heart attack.

Talking about her Hits Radio Last week, Fleur played a voice note from her cousin in which the medium revealed that she communicates with “a ghost named Malcolm” who has a daughter who “sings or dances.”

The psychic went on to say: “[Malcolm’s] daughter is about to start something, she is about to start an adventure, as he calls it. He tells me to tell her I’m so proud of her and give her all the happiness in the world.”

The singer explained: “In 72 hours I’ll be dancing live for the first time and it’s really exciting, but something really weird happened to me ahead of the Strictly weekend.

“On Sunday I got a message from one of my cousins ​​who had been with a medium—people who speak to the spirit world.

“I’ve never gone to a medium because I believe in it and I’m quite scared to go because I’ve never wanted to test it. But my cousin went and this happened.

“So my dad passed away in 2020, his name was Malcolm and apparently he came through and wished me good luck for Strictly.”

Fleur described receiving the message as a “creepy yet comforting” experience as she was “so concerned” that her beloved late father would not be around such a big moment in her life.

She added: ‘Isn’t that really weird? It’s scary, but it’s also really comforting.

“The build-up to Strictly has been so nerve-wracking and I’ve been so anxious and that my father isn’t here for the first time before something so big in my life is huge.

“So to get a message like that, I need before the big weekend.”

Fleur previously admitted that she chose to participate in Strictly Come Dancing this year in honor of her late father, who was a huge fan of the BBC One competition.

She said, ‘I hope I can dance to some of my songs. For me it’s quite emotional. My father who passed away in 2020, Strictly was his favorite show. I’m going to do it for him.