Dianne Buswell reveals unique tactic to banish negative energy in Strictly training

Dianne Buswell burns sage to banish negative energy during 'Strictly Come Dancing' training sessions.

The 35-year-old star has revealed she tries to "cleanse the room" at the beginning of each rehearsal with her celebrity dance partner Chris McCausland, 47.

As quoted by the Daily Star newspaper's Hot TV column, she said: "When I come in, I go, ‘How are you feeling Chris?’

"And he goes, ‘Urgh'. I take that as not very good. So I get out the sage stick and I cleanse the room.

"It works for about an hour and Chris feels good and then he goes back to, ‘Urgh’. And then we get the stick out.”

Chris - who has made history this year as the BBC Latin and ballroom competition's first ever blind contestant - insisted he isn't a fan of the practice.

He added: "She likes her stinky stick and the whole room stinks. All the negative energy has left, but I think everything else is left."

Chris recently admitted he was "falling apart" before last weekend's live show after being struck down with a bad cold.

In a joint Instagram video with Dianne, Chris said: "I’ve had a cold. I’m falling apart, but I’m motoring on because I’m a soldier. But we’re getting through the dance with the song, all the way through, occasionally better than where it was yesterday."

Dianne quipped: "Before I even arrived here [for training] you messaged me: 'Oh Di. My throat, my nose, my wrist, my big toe…’"

And Chris - who is the show's first blind contestant - replied: "I was being considerate. I was just to let you know I’ve got a bug. My throat’s a bit sore, my nose is bunged up, just letting you know in case you want to wear a helmet."

The duo took on the salsa on Saturday (12.10.24), getting a standing ovation from the audience and a score of 30 from the judges.