00:00Shotz TV have been following the once-in-a-lifetime journey of two ordinary women
00:05who are getting ready to live out their Strictly Style dance floor transformation
00:11and where better to inspire them than at the Latin Dance World Championships.
00:20Shotz TV arranged for the two competitors to watch some world-class Latin dance
00:26and do a bit of window shopping at the Blackpool Dance Festival.
00:38Blackpool Dance Festival is renowned as the number one festival in the world.
00:42It's been running for 97 years and for ballroom dancers coming here they compare it to
00:50scoring a winning goal at Wembley or playing at Wimbledon.
00:53So it really is up there amongst the pinnacle of their career to get to perform here
00:57and this weekend as an example you know I was welcoming dancers from South Africa,
01:01from Canada and America whose ambition was to always come to Blackpool
01:06and dance on the Empress Ballroom floor and they fulfilled that ambition this weekend.
01:10I'll have that one please.
01:12My god, oh my god, oh my god, that is just stunning.
01:17I've never had a spray tan, never.
01:24Every time we come here I tell Darren it feels like home because we're here every time since
01:28we were kids, growing as a Blackpool grows.
01:31My mom has been coming for the last 50 years without missing a year.
01:34Yeah, so it's a part of our family, part of our life, yeah absolutely.
01:38It's the most beautiful dance venue in the world.
01:40There's like nothing that comes even close to it.
01:44It's the band, live band, all the people in the audience, the previous champions,
01:48all the champions that have been champions in that room,
01:51the ghosts of the champions in the room.
01:53Yeah, you can like almost sense there's something special.
01:55It's very special, yeah, there's just something special about it.
02:04I've danced here like maybe six, seven times as a dancer,
02:08competing myself in different categories from under 21 to amateur to professional, yes.
02:15It's mixed up feelings every time I came here,
02:18mixed up feelings every time I came here.
02:20It just feels very familiar and it's still changing a lot actually.
02:23Every year something new, but still you get that you heard the music,
02:27it's always the same kind of music, same style,
02:31and it still brings you back to like years ago when I was competing.
02:36Linda and Claire, along with 10 other novice dancers,
02:40fight it out with their pro partners to win in a Strictly style extravaganza,
02:46all in aid of the Tia's Crown mental health charity.
02:51The dazzling event is held at the Blackpool Winter Gardens
02:55on Friday the 14th of June and will include performances by Joanne Clifton,
03:02Kyle Passmore and of course the ultimate Strictly style battle of the ballroom.
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