Jamie Laing has admitted that his mother, Penny Baines, told him he wasn’t going to win Strictly Come Dancing ahead of his debut.
The Made In Chelsea star, 32, who is currently starring on the hit BBC One competition alongside Karen Hauer, said his mother, 65, even doubted his dancing ability.
Yet after topping the leaderboard with two 10s and fighting to stay in the competition against DJ Clara Amfo in last week’s dance-off, his mum Penny has now changed her mind.
Oh no! Jamie Laing has admitted that his mother, Penny Baines, told him he wasn’t going to win Strictly Come Dancing ahead of his debut
Jamie admitted that his mother Penny and grandmother Patricia will now be ‘particularly disappointed’ if he doesn’t make the final and take home the coveted Glitterball Trophy.
He told The Mirror: ‘Right at the beginning, I remember telling my mum I was going to do Strictly. She said, “Oh, that’s so great darling”. Then she said, “You know you’re not going to win it”. I was like, “Thanks very much mum, that’s really positive!”‘
According to Jamie, his family are now completely behind him, having witnessed his impressive dancing journey on TV.
The McVitie’s heir said: ‘At the beginning, they weren’t expecting much. But now I think everyone’s going to be disappointed if I don’t win it. And my mum is going to be particularly disappointed.’
Hilarious: The Made In Chelsea star, 32, who is currently starring on the BBC One competition alongside Karen Hauer, said his mother, 65, pictured, even doubted his dancing ability
Aside from his proud mother, Jamie revealed his biggest supporter is his 90-year-old grandmother.
The Candy Kittens entrepreneur told his dear grandmother to ‘rally the troops’ in support, but she admitted she doesn’t know how to vote for him on the show.
He laughed: ‘She’s just loving it. In her village in Scotland, everyone knows I’m her grandson as she goes around telling everyone – it’s hilarious. But she’s never voted for me, she doesn’t know how to.’
Jamie was expected to appear on the 2019 series of Strictly, however he was forced to pull out after suffering from a foot injury during the first show.
Support: Yet after topping the leaderboard with two 10s and fighting to stay in the competition against DJ Clara Amfo in last week’s dance-off, his mum Penny has now changed her mind
He confirmed that he is still a member of the communal WhatsApp group from the 2019 show, and that most of them are voting for him now.
The reality star reflected on his withdrawal last year, saying it was ‘Granny Scotland’ he felt he had let down, after she phoned him to tell him she was ‘probably going to die next year’.
According to Jamie, she is ‘over the moon’ to see him on the small screen with his professional dance partner Karen, and she throws a small party for herself every Saturday when he hits the dance floor.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, his 90-year-old relative hasn’t been able to have anyone round, so seeing him on Strictly ‘makes her week’.
On Saturday’s forthcoming quarter final episode, Jamie and his dance partner Karen, 38, will put their dancing shoes on to Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, from the musical of the same name.
The MIC star confirmed he’s had a productive week of training and plans to smash the ‘incredible musical’ out of the water.
Jamie also revealed his taxing dancing regime has had a knock-on effect for his relationship with Sophie Habboo, 27, whom he met on the E4 reality show.
He added: ‘Sophie’s in the flat the whole time and I’m dancing all day. What comes home is a very tired boyfriend. It’s not fun for her but she’s so wonderful, supportive and patient.’
Challenging times: Jamie also revealed his taxing dancing regime has had a knock-on effect for his relationship with Sophie Habboo, 27, whom he met on the E4 reality show