A FIREFIGHTER from Flintshire is set to tackle the stigma surrounding male dancers as a BBC series returns.

Dare To Dance will be returning to our screens for a second series next month.

It follows Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden as she teaches several people to dance.

Amy was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in May 2023 and had to miss out on being a competitor on Strictly during the latest series.

But, in her very own series, she returns to the dancefloor to help people fulfil their dancing dreams.

Helping her will be Strictly professionals Dianne Buswell and Graziano Di Prima along with Dancing On Ice judge Oti Mabuse, a previously Strictly champion.

And series two will be kicking off with a firefighter from Holywell who is no stranger to being on screen.

Rich Allen has previously appeared on the likes of SAS: Who Dares Wins back in 2019.

As well as working in the fire service for the last 17 years, he has also featured in Dreamboys and as a dance teacher at Mold Urban Fusion. 

Episode 1 will air at  7pm on Friday, March 1 and will follow Rich's training ahead of dancing in front of 80 of his colleagues as he looks to bust the myth that men can’t or shouldn’t dance.

His journey to that eventual big dance lasted a month.

Ahead of Dare to Dance's launch, Rich said: "I got a lot of stick when I was younger as I played football to a decent standard, but chose to pursue dance instead.

"The main reason for me doing this was to raise awareness and to show other men that it is acceptable to enjoy dancing. It was a really fun experience.

"My colleagues didn't know it was going to happen so to walk out and dance in front of them was nerve-racking but amazing."

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Rich, who learnt to Salsa and Cha-Cha during his Dare to Dance experience, added: "I've never danced so intimately with someone so I struggled with keeping the eye contact at first. That was tougher than I thought.

"But, the biggest thing I'm most nervous about when watching it back is that my family are also on it.

"The BBC filmed my wife, daughter and bits of our house and we're usually quite private in that respect. They also filmed parts in my wife's dance school, so it'll be nice for the children there to be able to see themselves on the telly.

"I think my personality will shine through on it and I've been told there's some funny bits in there. I'm sure the lads will give me a lot of banter for it but it's something I'll never forget."

The second season of Dare to Dance will also feature a Wrexham AFC-obsessed couple.

Chris and Debbie Roberts - who are shown getting married in the episode, even get a cameo from It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia creator Rob McElhenney, who co-owns the team with fellow Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds.