Dan Snow has revealed he felt like he was going to pass out after his grueling first rehearsal with professional partner Nadiya Bychkova for the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special.
The 45-year-old historian is one of six celebrities who will battle it out on the dancefloor in the festive special, which airs on December 25.
Dan is a history broadcaster, best-selling author and entrepreneur and his podcast History Hit is listened to millions of times every month.
He was also part of the expedition to find the Shackleton's Endurance shipwreck in Antarctica in 2022.
Speaking about training for the special, he revealed it was a lot of hard work and his whole body was 'sore'.
Dan Snow has revealed he felt like he was going to pass out after his grueling first rehearsal with professional partner Nadiya Bychkova for the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special
The 45-year-old historian is one of six celebrities who will battle it out on the dancefloor in the festive special, which airs on December 25.
Dan is a history broadcaster, best-selling author and entrepreneur and his podcast History Hit is listened to millions of times every month. He was also part of the expedition to find the Shackleton's Endurance shipwreck in Antarctica in 2022 (photo)
Dan said: 'I always thought I was quite fit, I like taking the kids into the mountains, and after the first session with Nadiya I got in the car and almost had to pull over on the side of the road because I thought I would faint.
'It was so intense, my head and my legs, and my whole body ached. I feel as mentally healthy and happy as I have felt for a long time, dancing is really good for you, and I highly recommend everyone to get out and dance.”
Explaining his reasons for signing up, he said: “I love dancing, but I'm terrible at dancing. It's been a lifelong ambition to learn to dance and when you get the privilege of going on one of the biggest shows on British TV and getting one-on-one training from a phenomenal coach, I thought it would be so much fun would be .
'It's a huge privilege to work on the biggest show on the BBC, it felt like something really special to do this Christmas.'
Dan also revealed that he wanted to compete for his family, saying: 'For me it's to show family, friends and fans what we've been working on together, I want to show people what you can do if you put in the effort, and do things you never thought were possible.
“I want to get through it, have fun and celebrate the last two weeks of such a fun experience with a big smile on my face.”
Dan is the proud father of three children, Zia, 12, Wolf, nine, and Orla, eight, with his wife Lady Edwina Louise Grosvenor.
He said: “My family are incredibly excited. They're young enough to be genuinely excited and not old enough to be ashamed, so they're excited and so excited, but they're old enough to go… “Does Nadiya mind that she's dancing with an old man like you?” so it's a nice balanced approach to my kids.
Last year Corrie's Alexandra Mardell won the festive show with pro Kai Widdrington after achieving a perfect score with their fun Quickstep
“And my cousins are coming for Christmas, and they don't know I'm doing it and they're mad. Strictly fans, so we're going to turn it on, on Christmas Day, and they're going to think “oh cool, it's Strictly” and then you see Uncle Dan and you go crazy.'
Dan and Nadiya will take on the Jive in a gingerbread man themed routine. Discussing his partner, he said, “Everyone knows Nadiya as the famous, super beautiful, famous dancer, but what I have learned is in fact the real Nadiya. is a teacher. I have been privileged to receive the best coaching.”
Nadiya also praised Dan, saying, “Dan is so focused, I didn't expect him to be so into it, and I love it. I think he rehearses in his sleep, so I'm a proud teacher.”
She continued, “Dan is doing really well. He notices it, and when I threw something new at him, that meant he took a few steps back, and it can feel like it's not quite there when we're done with rehearsal, but then he comes back the next day and says, “I slept through it and I understand it better now” and he is much better. And that happened in every session.
'I enjoyed teaching Dan because he is very focused, understands the mechanics and does a lot of homework. He is the perfect student.'
The Strictly Christmas special pits Dan against BBC Breakfast presenter Sally Nugent, EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick, professional rugby player Danny Cipriani, actress and presenter Tillie Amartey and Sugababes singer Keisha Buchanan.
The six couples will perform a festive-themed routine in the hope of impressing judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Anton Du Beke and head judge Shirley Ballas, as well as the voting studio audience to win the coveted Christmas trophy.
The Come dance strictly The Christmas special will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on December 25 from 4.40pm.
Last year's Strictly Come Dancing Christmas line-up included professional dancers Nadiya Bychkova, Neil Jones, Amy Dowden, Luba Mushtuk and Giovanni Pernice – who opened the show with a festive routine