Russell: "Forget The Spray Tans"

You won't be seeing Russell with a spray tan or skimpy outfit ant time soon.

Despite losing lots of weight, Russell wants to keep his non-tanned flesh under wraps. He told the Sunday Mirror: "Costume have taken my pants in five inches and my ­collar three sizes since I started ­training. I’m losing weight every single week. You won’t be seeing me in anything slashed to the waist. Can you imagine? I still got quite a way to go... about three stone... All my costumes have been very much high-necked. I wear outfits like Maggie Smith in ­Downton Abbey. While I’m dressed like the ­Dowager Duchess, we can leave it at make-up... forget the spray tans.”

Russell is doing it for all the larger dancers out there: “I’ve always loved music and ­dancing. People tend to forget that fat people can dance. It’s about rhythm, and you can have that no matter how big you are.”