BBC Radio 2 presenter Vernon Kay has opened up about the unusual way he first met his wife, Strictly Come Dancing host Tess Daly.
The broadcaster shared the memory with listeners at the start of his radio show on Friday (August 31), after the song 'Stronger' by US pop star Britney Spears had just played.
Kay revealed that Spears was a factor in their first meeting, when they were both presenters on the 2000-2001 music show Top of the Pops@play.
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"It was Strictly Come Dancing's Tess Daly and I, [we] recreated the video for Britney Spears' 'Hit Me Baby One More Time'. That's how we first met,' he told fellow Radio 2 DJ and Celebrity Race Across the World star Scott Mills, as they made the transition from Mills' breakfast show to Kay's mid-morning show.
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"I was dressed... no, she was dressed as Geri Halliwell in the Spice Girls Union Jack dress; I was dressed as Britney Spears in the 'Hit Me Baby One More Time' video. It was in a charity shop on Shepherd's Green, Shepherd's Bush Green."
Kay went on to explain how Mills – who also presented Top of the Pops@play back in the day – ended up unknowingly being the couple's matchmaker.
"I think you teed it up," Kay said. "I think you set it up as, 'Why don't you and our new presenter Tess Daly, go and do this?'"
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Mills replied: "So, am I responsible for you being married to Strictly Come Dancing's Tess Daly?" with Kay confirming: "In a roundabout way".
The presenting couple will celebrate their 21st anniversary this month, having tied the knot back in September 2003. Kay and Daly share two daughters together, Phoebe, 19, and Amber, 15.
Daly will be back on screens soon with the 2024 series of Strictly, with the launch show kicking off on September 14.
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This year's line-up includes Olympic hockey player Sam Quek, DIY SOS presenter Nick Knowles, and former Arsenal footballer Paul Merson, plus EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick, Corrie's Shayne Ward, Olympic swimmer Tom Dean, and Miranda's Sarah Hadland.
Also taking to the dancefloor is TOWIE's Pete Wicks, Love Island star Tasha Ghouri, JLS star JB Gill, Go Compare advert star Wynne Evans, popstar Toyah Willcox, Morning Live's Dr Punam Krishan and comedian Chris McCausland.
Strictly Come Dancing will return on BBC One on September 14, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Emily is an experienced freelance entertainment writer and editor, reporting on all things TV, film, soaps and showbiz. An NCTJ-qualified journalist, with a First Class Honours degree in Journalism from the University of Sussex, Emily is a former Deputy News Editor and Evening News Editor at Digital Spy. She has previously worked at Hello magazine, BBC South News and GoodtoKnow.
A small and big-screen obsessive – with subscriptions to every TV and film service under the sun – Emily knows her movie stars from soap stars, and is always clued up on the latest reality show dumping, just-dropped trailer or off-screen spat. She's interviewed a number of celebrities over the years, with highlights including The Masked Singer host Joel Dommett and GMB's Kate Garraway (who "loved" her trousers).
Emily counts Sharon Horgan and Julia Davis as her TV heroes, and is a loyal Wes Anderson fan. LinkedIn
