BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Sarah Hadland 'kiss' confession with iconic Hollywood star

One of Strictly Come Dancing Sarah Hadland’s first jobs as an actress was a role as a chambermaid in a 90s film which saw her smooch with an award winning star - an encounter she described as ‘weird’

Strictly star Sarah Hadland struggled to be taken seriously when she went into acting and one of her first signings was in a ‘dreadful’ film where she was ‘pawed’ under a tree.

Sarah Hadland is one of the contestants on this year’s Strictly Come Dancing alongside the likes of singer and actor Shayne Ward, Love Island ’s Tasha Ghouri and reality star Pete Wicks. She has spoken about her joy at landing the gig, saying: "I cannot believe I am part of Strictly" "I feel particularly excited to be part of such an iconic show in its 20th year. I’m so ready for the glitz, glam and glitter and hopefully I can make everyone watching at home proud!"

Sarah is probably best known for playing Stevie Sutton in BBC sitcom Miranda, but before she became an actress, the 53 year old was a trained dancer who appeared in the West End. The actress, who starred in Cats when she was just 20, struggled at first to be taken seriously because she says musical theatre was looked down on in the industry back then. In an interview with Metro in 2013 she recalled: "I loved pouncing around in my Lycra pants, doing high kicks, but I wanted to do something I could contribute more to. With the musicals I did you didn’t have much creative input.

"I wiped my CV clean of musicals, did fringe theatre and bits in The Bill and Casualty - either as a heroin addict or as a sobbing mother with a baby. That wasn’t very funny so I filmed a comedy sketch with some friends for my showreel and got my break into comedy with that." One of the first acting roles she bagged was in the 1998 film Basil, an historical drama starring Christian Slater, Jared Leto, Claire Forlani and Derek Jacobi. She played the role of a chambermaid at Windermere Hall, a family estate in Cornwall where part of the movie is based.

The home provided the back drop for Sarah’s on screen kiss with an award winning British icon that she has described as "weird". She explained: "It was one of my first jobs in a dreadful film called Basil. I played Windermere House Maid and I had to snog Derek Jacobi on the lawn. There’s this awful moaning noise, then the camera pans back to reveal Derek Jacobi pawing me under a tree. He was absolutely lovely about it and there I was thinking: 'This is one of the great stars of the theatre,' so it was a bit weird."

Sarah isn’t the only contestant on the talent show this year who has previous dance training. Tasha who will be Strictly's second-ever deaf contestant, worked as a dancer before appearing on Love Island. JLS singer JB Gill has also been signed up after previously winning the Christmas special in 2012. He is known for his impressive dance moves on stage as part of the hit X Factor boyband.

Sarah’s friend and fellow actor Alex Kingston once said she wouldn’t want to appear in Strictly at the same time as her pal because it wouldn’t be fair. In 2019 she commented: "Sarah Hadland and I talked about how much we’d like to do Strictly Come Dancing. Then I discovered that she’s actually a trained ballet dancer. 'Hang on a minute! That’s not fair!' So, I can’t do it on a season when she is on it!"

Do you think it's fair that previously trained dancers are allowed to take part in Strictly? Let us know in the comments below.