BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Sarah Hadland recalls 'horror' Blackpool experience

Sarah Hadland has recounted her horror donkey experience, likening it to a gruesome scene straight out of a fright flick.

Despite looking forward to returning to Blackpool for ' Strictly Come Dancing ', she doesn't have the cheeriest of memories from her childhood visits there.

She shared: "My mum took me to Blackpool when I was a little. We got there and we did the rollercoaster... when our photograph came through everyone had their arms in the air but I'm nowhere to be seen.

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"I'm in the brace position, probably screaming, brace, brace. After that, my mum took us to go on a little donkey ride on the beach. I got on a donkey but it got spooked. I swung under the donkey and was dragged with my face in the sand. " "This donkey was called something like Brenda. It's like something in a horror film. After that, I think I was a bit traumatised and just came home."

Even with the traumatic experience behind her, the 'Miranda' actress is over the moon to hit the famous sprung dance floor of the Blackpool Tower Ballroom. She continued: "I'm quite a bouncy person and Vito [Coppola] spends a lot of time telling me to stop being so bouncy."

"He says I'm like Tigger from Winnie the Pooh. But then he's quite bouncy too, but he can control it. " "I'm worried that I'm going to have to be even less bouncy. To actually dance on it will be amazing."

Hadland feels it's a tremendous honour to grace the stage at the illustrious venue. She said: "How many people who are not professional dancers can say that they've competed on the ballroom at Blackpool? That's just crazy. There is added pressure because you've got the size and the scale, the privilege is just going to make me absolutely go for it."

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