Strictly star Johannes Radebe reveals heartbreaking reason he nearly quit show
South African professional dancer was partnered with Annabel Croft in 2023 series
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Your support makes all the difference.Strictly Come Dancing semi-finalist Johannes Radebe has revealed the heartbreaking reason he nearly quit the show after being paired with former British tennis player Annabel Croft.
The fan favourites made it all the way to the semi-final of the BBCās dancing competition last year, with winners Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola ultimately claiming the glitterball.
In a new interview on Jessie Ware and her mother Lennieās podcast Table Manners, Radebe, 36, shared the reason why he almost didnāt take part in the competition following tragic circumstances in his and Croftās personal lives.
Radebe revealed that he had lost his cousin to suicide shortly before the season, while Croft had been grieving her husband Mel Coleman, who died of colon cancer in May.
āWhen they said Iām dancing with her, I was like: āWhat are they trying to achieve?ā And I say that because two weeks before I started, I buried my cousin who [died by] suicide,ā he said.
Radebe had just concluded a successful tour when he was forced to return to his home country, South Africa, to mourn the death of his cousin.
As a result, the Strictly star explained that he ādidnāt feel anythingā and wasnāt as excited as heād usually be at the start of the season.
![Annabel Croft and Johannes Radebe made it to the semi-finals of Strictly Come Dancing 2023](https://static.the-independent.com/2023/12/10/16/459238.jpg)
He continued: āI could have stayed out there [in South Africa] for longer but after we buried him, I had to fly back to the UK and do my audiobook.ā
Although the dancer and choreographer now says that Croft helped him process his grief, he had reservations about how their respective mourning would impact their professional and personal relationships during the competition.
āYou can imagine when they said the partners I was just like āOK greatā,ā Radebe admitted. āI 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.
āThey said we think that youāre the person to partner with this woman. I just said to myself, theyāre reaching.
āI remember calling my agent, I was like, I donāt know whatās going to happen,ā he added. āMaybe we should say that I shouldnāt get a partner this year because I just really need some time out.ā
![Johannes Radebe](https://static.the-independent.com/2024/02/08/13/newFile-3.jpg)
Discussing the impact Croft had had on his personal life as he grieved the loss of his cousin, he said: āA lot of people say, āOh Johannes, you helped Annabelā, but no, Annabel helped me.ā
Croft has described her experience on the show as ālife-changingā, and told the MailOnline that Radebe had made her laugh like her husband used to. She also shared how her dance partner had given her a reason to get out of bed in the morning in a heartfelt Instagram post.
Elsewhere in the podcast episode, published on Wednesday (7 February), Radebe also shared how surprised heād been at the impact the dancing competition had had on viewers.
āThat blows my mind, I donāt want to tell lies ā a mere dance show to have such an impact. When you look at it from my perspective, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think.ā
His popular audiobook and memoir Jojo: Finally Home is being turned into a movie and will chronicle his rise from poverty to fame according to Deadline.
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