Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood says Michael Gove should have practised dancing at home first

‘There is a technical issue here, darling,’ Strictly judge says

Craig Revel Horwood wasn’t impressed by the viral video of Michael Gove dancing in a club in Aberdeen.

The hard-to-pleaseStrictly Come Dancing judge weighed in after footage emerged of Gove dancing enthusiastically at the Bohemia nightclub in the city centre over the weekend.

Appearing on Jeremy Vine’s Channel 5 show on Monday 30 August, Horwood – who has judged politicians on Strictly including Edwina Currie and Ed Balls – gave his own view.

He said he found the clip “hilarious” but wasn’t convinced by the Conservative MP’s dancing ability.

“I’ve got to say this,” he began. “I have to embrace people going out and enjoying themselves and dancing, no matter in what form. However, there is a technical issue here, darling.

“As a judge on Strictly Come Dancing, I can only comment technically. I don’t care how people dance in that respect, but if you’re going out to a nightclub at 1.30 in the morning, pie-eyed, and you get filmed doing this sort of dancing, then it’s your own fault, quite frankly.”

Horwood said Gove should be “more technical” if he was intent on dancing in public.

“At least rehearse it at home, I would say!” he joked.

“The problem with his dancing is his core, there isn’t a real urgency or inner rhythm there. He’s trying to compensate that with the flick of a wrist, and he does that over and over again, and that becomes very competitive to watch, darling.”

Rating Gove’s performance, Horwood said: “Now, I know he was out enjoying himself, and for that I would clearly give him a 10… but as a technical, the only possible score I could give [his dancing] is a three.

“The problem with Michael Gove's dancing is his core, there's no inner rhythm”

Gove, an Aberdonian himself, was supposedly bought drinks by fellow clubbers all night.

Singer Emma Lament, 30, told the Daily Record newspaper she “couldn't believe what she was seeing” when the “merry” MP “rocked up”.

“I heard people saying, 'he's a Tory MP' others asked 'who's Michael Gove?' and were Googling him.

”Soon people went up for photos. The Tories aren't too popular in Scotland but people were generally quite nice to him.“

A claim that Gove tried to avoid paying the £5 entry charge by repeatedly stating that he was the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster was rejected by friends of the minister.

Strictly Come Dancing returns this autumn on BBC One. You can find a list of the contestants announced so far here.