LIKE many contestants on Strictly, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey – aka Nitro from Gladiators – has been inspired to go into the West End after he leaves the competition.
The former Team GB sprinter has been dazzling viewers of the BBC One dance contest with surprisingly nimble moves for such a man-mountain.
But rather than joining River-dance or Starlight Express, Harry jokes that his hunky frame might make him more suited to go Full Monty as a stripper.
He said with a laugh: “Oh yeah, Magic Mike is incoming, and I am getting bigger. It’s actually muscle I’m putting on.
“I made the mistake of listening to people telling me I’d lose a load of muscle through this process.
“Typically you eat a lot before, to compensate for that. So going into this I ate more to put on a bit of weight and muscle, so when I did the process, I’d return to my normal weight.
“I’ve been on the physio table the last couple of weeks and he’s been like, ‘Your calves have got bigger’.
“It’s because I’m wearing Cuban heels now — they’re good to go. Now I love a pair of heels.”
Harry has thrilled fans over the last four weeks as he has shown off his toned torso in revealing outfits.
Channelling Nitro
His saucy rumba last week even left judges Motsi Mabuse and Shirley Ballas blushing.
Harry, 37, said: “I’m not an actor, I’m not sexy, I’m quite goofy, ain’t I? So to try and be that person was really challenging but you have to embrace it.
“I feel like most people didn’t know how to speak to me after. People walked up to me like, ‘All right?’ Like their viewpoint of me had changed.
“But I think too many people have read too many books in that romantic scene.”
Even so, he teased: “I feel like there’s still more of me to get out. I’m used to going out and having a good time.
“When you see Nitro celebrate after knocking someone off on Duel or catching someone on The Wall, I’m just having a good time.
“I’ve been channelling a bit of Nitro of late — it’s ‘Go out there, give it 100 per cent, give it your all’, whooping and all that.
“But you’ve got to be in the zone, mindful of your steps, you can’t allow your body to do what it wants.
“You have to control it, and I’m learning that with this. When I get excited or I get powerful and allow my physical traits to take over, not to say it could be a calamity, but that’s when mistakes creep in.
I’ve been channelling a bit of Nitro of late — it’s ‘Go out there, give it 100 per cent, give it your all’, whooping and all that
“I want to get to that 100 per cent of Nitro but within a dance, maybe 95 per cent, because we don’t go out of control for everything.
“Or maybe I just need to be 80 per cent Nitro on the dance floor.”
Harry and his wife Lauren married in 2019 and they have a five-year-old daughter, Aubreé-Isla.
Lauren has stayed out of the spotlight, and Harry is reluctant to talk about her, though he admits she is loving watching him in the BBC ballroom.
He said: “She’s in awe of the majority of things I do anyway.
“My journey as an athlete and person has been interesting.
Oh yeah, Magic Mike is incoming, and I am getting bigger. It’s actually muscle I’m putting on… it’s because I’m wearing Cuban heels!
“From the athletics track to Gladiators to this, even MasterChef, so many things I’ve been able to apply myself to.
“For her, my dancing is good, but she’s not surprised because she thinks I can do anything.”
And it seems Lauren might be the secret behind Harry’s success in the training room — because he is treating his Strictly pro dance partner Karen Hauer like his work wife.
He said: “I’m a good student, I just need to be told what to do.
“Truth be told, that’s why my wife loves me — because she tells me what to do and I do it. That’s pretty much what I do with Karen.
“I think Karen’s really good at reading people. Within the first week she was able to get a gist of if I had a bit of a brain malfunction or my eye twitched.
“She was like, ‘OK, we’re going to go over this bit because I can see you’re not . . . ’ It’s like my head is nodding but my eyes are telling her I don’t understand.”
As for dancing with Harry, with his boundless energy and hunky frame, Karen said: “It is like I’m driving a Maserati. I have to slightly tap the gas, then slightly tap the brake so it rides just perfectly.
“He’s a race car that’s fine tuned, and I have to keep tuning it so it drives perfectly.
“But we’re not the sexy kind. That rumba was so awkward. We didn’t look at each other — I told him to look at my forehead so I didn’t laugh.”
Daunting process
Before he joined the rebooted Gladiators last year Harry had a glittering athletics career as a sprinter and relay runner.
He took part in the 2016 Rio Olympics and has won multiple golds at the Commonwealth Games and European Championships.
Even so, he admits taking on Strictly has pushed him well outside his comfort zone.
He said: “I don’t think people realise how daunting this process is.
“I’ve been on the world stage, I’ve competed against Usain Bolt and I’ve taken a pugil stick to the head on a few occasions, but on Strictly, going up against those judges and with people watching at home, it’s so different.
“What has really surprised me is it’s entered my dreams — I’m dreaming about Strictly. My subconscious is active.
“As an athlete, you do random things, so when I go upstairs, I use sprinter technique. I’m used to practising steps in normal life.
“But when I’m sleeping, my place of rest, I’m waking up, going, ‘One, two, three, five, six, seven’. That’s a new level.”
I’ve been on the world stage, I’ve competed against Usain Bolt. But on Strictly, going up against those judges and with people watching at home, it’s so different
It is that dedication that has seen Harry return to the spotlight after rupturing his kneecap during training for the second series of Gladiators, which began in January this year without him taking part.
He admits that at one point he didn’t know if he would ever get back on his feet and perform again.
So it is no surprise that Harry was in tears after his first performance on Strictly last month. And he hopes his comeback on the show will inspire others at home.
He said: “There was a time when I thought I’d never get back to the person I was when I was in my peak fitness.
“It’s so important that we all have belief in ourselves to be ourselves. We don’t think about being happy enough.
“I have a mantra that I say every day which is, have I smiled enough today? If I haven’t, I do something that makes me smile.
“This is definitely making me smile.”
- Strictly Come Dancing continues tonight on BBC One at 6.25pm.
