Long-time host Brian Elrick proud to have played a part in growth of Strictly Inverness
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The host of Strictly Inverness says his passion for the event is as strong as ever with the dancing extravaganza hitting new heights every year.
Strictly Inverness raises hundreds of thousands of pounds every year for Highland Hospice, and Brian Elrick has been the face of the show since near the beginning.
The first time Highland Hospice ran the event was in 2010, and Mr Elrick came on board the following year and has welcomed spectators and dancers to the showcase ever since.
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Originally from the North East, his first visit to Inverness was when he was on stage at the pantomime in Eden Court, and through that he forged a friendship with Sally Robinson at the TFX Performing Arts Academy, who in turn connected him with the Hospice.
After 12 years of hosting Strictly, then, Mr Elrick has no intention of stopping any time soon having witnessed first-hand the event's growth.
"It's always a great event, and it's come so far," he said.
"When they introduced the celeb judges, I think that took it up to another level.
"Obviously it does amazing things for loads of charities, and I've done a number of things with the Hospice on and off.
"I'm still really invested in the event. It has gotten bigger, but I do feel like I've had a huge contribution to that as well – I almost feel like it's my baby as much as anyone else's!
"The day you lose the passion for it should be the day you walk away, and I'm not there yet."
This year the celebrity judges were former BBC Strictly Come Dancing professionals Aljaž Škorjanec and Janette Manrara, but their involvement is not the only way the competition has grown.
The sheer size of the event has also scaled up significantly, going from a one-night competition to three – with the bigger group of participants having to battle their way through semi finals to get to the main event.
That means more work for Mr Elrick, but this year he made a point of travelling north earlier to get the chance to meet the contestants beforehand which made his life somewhat easier.
"Initially it wasn't two heats and then a grand final, it was just one competition," he explained.
"Obviously that means it has almost doubled in size, with two heats to find our eight finalist couples, and then we narrow it down to our top three.
"I write all my own script and all my own introductions, so it's just double the work, but this year I was up a few days earlier, so I got to meet everyone.
"When I get to know everyone, it makes it easier to write introductions – it's very hard to write about someone coming on to dance when all you've got is what's in the programme.
"In the past I've written things like 'please welcome our little firecracker', and then you meet the person and they're the most timid thing ever, so it makes it easier when you have the chance to meet them."
