Strictly star Anton Du Beke reveals he was stabbed by alcoholic father on Boxing Day as a child
2 August 2023, 08:12 | Updated: 2 August 2023, 11:23
Strictly star Anton Du Beke has revealed that he was stabbed in the leg and stomach by his alcoholic father on Boxing Day as a child, leaving him in hospital for three days.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
Anton Du Beke grew up on a council estate in Sevenoaks and discovered his flair for dancing after picking his sister up from the local studio.
Although his mother encouraged his new hobby, his father, Antal, "took a turn" against him as alcoholism gripped him.
The 57-year-old said the childhood incident would likely come as a shock to his friends and family as it is the first time he has spoken about it.
Rishi Sunak will join Nick Ferrari at Breakfast on Wednesday from 7am to answer your questions - Listen live on Global Player.
Do you have a question for the Prime Minister? Ask it here.
"The alcoholism and the violence...(it was) towards me, because I was a boy, a young man I suppose," Du Beke said on Kate Garraway's Life Stories.
"...You've got an alcoholic father and a situation where if you're in the house (he's) drinking then you end up with the fights and stuff.
"You'd move room to get away from all of it and then he follows you in and the next thing you know the violence starts and then it came to a head one evening, I ended up in hospital for three days.
"I got stabbed, I've never said this out loud before," he said struggling to hold back his tears.
Read more: Euphoria star Angus Cloud dies aged 25 - a week after his father's funeral
Du Beke said he was sure his family and friends did not know about the attack because he never saw any gain from speaking about his ordeal, telling Garraway: "I'm a forward looker...I don't like to look back, I like to look forward."
Recalling the incident, he continued: "...I got stabbed in the leg and in the stomach because of a fight on Boxing Day and it was an idiotic situation.
"I remember walking out of the house to walk up to the hospital holding my leg and a police car drove past and I waved them down and I said 'he's in there with a knife'.
"Anyway, they carted him off and I ended up in hospital for three or four days.
"My only concern was getting back into the studio and dancing and the embarrassment of it."
He said he told people he had "pulled a hamstring" when asked about his leg injury because he was embarrassed about the truth.
"I can't really believe I'm talking to you about this. I should've glossed over this," he said.
"Even the thought of [the attack] being a thing sort of annoys me as well."
Du Beke's father was cleared in court of wounding his son and when he died, Du Beke did not attend his funeral.
"Everything was about moving forwards, I felt sorry for my mum, this was her husband, she's working two jobs and he chose to drink and be violent, it's just life and you carry on," he said.
At the time, the aspiring dancer changed his name "from Tony Beke, who grew up on a council estate" to "Anton Du Beke, The Show Man".
"I wanted a new start and a new beginning and I wanted to leave what went before, behind, and then move on with the rest of my life, I just wanted to be me," he said.
Du Beke also said his motivation to achieve success was not because of his father.
He added: "I hate woe is me, I never sought any sense of confirmation or encouragement from him and I never did anything I did because of him.
"My motivation to do what I did was not because of that."
Du Beke was the longest-serving professional dancer on Strictly before swapping his dance shoes for the judging panel, where he took over from Bruno Tonioli permanently in 2021.
His celebrity partners over the years included former home secretary Jacqui Smith, soap star Emma Barton and politician Ann Widdecombe.
