angela rippon joined MPs and Strictly stars in a dance session at Parliament’s Portcullis House aimed at promoting the advantages of dance for the nation’s health and wellbeing.
What Happens When MPs Dance in Parliament?
More than 40 MPs gathered under the glass atrium of Portcullis House to take part in a guided dance class led by choreographer Kai Widdrington. Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle danced with Rippon after welcoming the celebrities from the television programme to Westminster. Participants included former Strictly contestant Alex Kingston, professional dancers Flavia Cacace and Neil Jones and ex-judge Dame Arlene Phillips. Parliamentarians on the floor included New Green Party MP Hannah Spencer, shadow culture secretary Nigel Huddleston, Conservative MP Caroline Nokes and Labour’s Kim Leadbeater as they practised footwork alongside the visiting dancers.
What If Angela Rippon Frames Dance as a Health Intervention?
Rippon, described in the event coverage as an 81-year-old veteran broadcaster whose Let’s Dance initiative was inspired by her time on Strictly Come Dancing in 2023, urged politicians to encourage people to exercise. She said: “Dance can be such a valuable tool in getting the nation healthy and saving money. ” She called on MPs to support dance teachers and communities, to promote social prescribing and to write fewer expensive prescriptions.
Rippon argued that dance could address medical conditions, the obesity and mental health crises, and help older people by improving core strength, balance, coordination and leg strength, which she said would reduce falls and save money on the NHS. The campaign accompanying the session has been backed by Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who described it as having a positive impact on people’s health and wellbeing while helping to reduce the risk of developing serious illnesses.
What Happens Next?
The event prompted critics who questioned the timing and optics of a dancing session in Parliament. Former Labour MP Zarah Sultana posted that the sight of MPs doing Strictly Come Dancing while the world teeters on the brink of World War Three was “completely inappropriate” and said it revealed what she believes about Westminster. Reform UK’s Nadhim Zahawi called it “a very bad look for Parliament” in the context of the Middle East, describing concerns about a terrorist regime seeking nuclear weapons that could threaten the United Kingdom.
The session in Portcullis House stands on record for its mix of cross-party parliamentary participation, celebrity involvement and policy messaging about health and social prescribing. It combined public advocacy from television personalities and endorsement from a senior health minister with immediate political pushback over timing and optics, leaving the future uptake of the initiative and any parliamentary follow-up to be decided by MPs and ministers in the weeks ahead angela rippon
