Strictly's Colin and Kristina head to Canada

Strictly's Colin and Kristina head to Canada
Strictly's Colin and Kristina head to Canada (Image credit: PA)

Strictly Come Dancing star Colin Salmon took show partner Kristina Rihanoff to Canada this week so they could continue training while he filmed a TV drama. The 49-year-old actor, known to movie fans for his roles in James Bond films, had to head across the Atlantic to work on scenes for his programme Arrow which was shooting in Vancouver. And to get in enough dance practice, Kristina had to fly out to be with him, although the pair were returning to the UK on Thursday morning. Filming commitments have eaten into their rehearsal time, leaving them only two days of intensive training. In a message to his professional partner online, Colin told her they would "be dancing ourselves to a frazzle". Kristina, 35, visited him on set and posted pictures of herself on location on Twitter. It was not until Wednesday that they managed to fit in a session to prepare this week's dance, an Argentine tango, which they will perform during the BBC One show's Hollywood-themed edition. The pair may be battling fatigue by the time the programme comes round on Saturday night though, with Kristina admitting the globetrotting was already making her feel "Sooo tired".

Patrick McLennan

Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix. 

An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.