A SOCIAL media star who grew up in Emersons Green missed out on the Strictly glitterball trophy – but has won a legion of new fans.
George Clarke and professional partner Alexis Warr made it to the final of BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing on the last Saturday before Christmas.
And although the pair missed out to former England footballer Karen Carney and partner Carlos Gu in the public vote, it isn’t the end of their partnership, which George called ‘Team Warrkey’, as both are taking part in the Strictly Come Dancing Live tour, which is currently playing 31 shows at nine arenas around the country.
George said: “The last few months have been a whirlwind, but I’m honestly delighted to be joining the tour and to be able to continue my Strictly journey on the road.”
The 26-year-old YouTube, TikTok and podcast host, who posts as George Clarkey, wrote a message to fans on his Instagram page after the final, thanking “anyone who showed any ounce of support”.
He said: “Strictly has been a hell of an experience for me and I feel like I’ve learned so, so much.
“For someone who’s made a career from sitting in front of a camera I really am not comfortable being the centre of attention so immediately I knew Strictly would be a challenge.
“After the first few weeks I really thought I’d bitten off more than I could chew, every week felt like such an alien movement and no part of me believed I could create as good a dance as the other people in the competition.
“But that’s where I have to thank Alexis.”
George said Alexis had “helped me discover some belief in myself, something that has really helped shape me as a person not just as a dancer”.
In the final George and Alexis performed a show dance to ‘Human’ by The Killers, a Viennese Waltz to ‘Somebody to Love’ by Queen, and chose to reprise their favourite dance from the series, a paso doble to ‘Game of Survival’ by Ruelle.
George said: “I ended the night doing three wildly different dances, none of which I would’ve had a chance in hell at doing at the start of the competition.
“Not only was there an improvement but I, hand on heart, genuinely loved performing them and that was something I never thought would happen.
“Overall, the whole world of Strictly is so uplifting and positive.
“Everyone in and around the Strictly family has been a breath of fresh air to have in my life.”
Among those who had been cheering George on from afar were pupils at Emersons Green Primary School, which he attended in his early years.
Speaking after the start of the competition, Emersons Green head of school Soraya Young said pupils were “buzzing with excitement” at George’s performances on Strictly.
She said: “George’s incredible journey on the dance floor has inspired many of the school’s children, sparking renewed enthusiasm for music, dance, and the arts across the school community.”
George, who later moved on to Colston’s School in Stapleton – now known as Collegiate School – also worked at Bottegino’s restaurant in Emersons Green before his content-creating career took off: he now has 2.4 million followers on TikTok and 649,000 YouTube subscribers.