Debbie McGee: Strictly star on ‘toughest time’ since losing husband Paul Daniels

Strictly Come Dancing star Debbie McGee says there is one particular time in the day that she finds the “toughest” since becoming a widow. The former ballet dancer lost her husband of almost 30 years to a brain tumour three years ago.

Debbie, aged 61, told the Guardian last year that she finds mornings particularly challenging since losing Paul.

She said that this was the one part of the day they almost always spent time together.

She told the publication: “The toughest time for me is in the morning, because we always had breakfast together and sat and talked.”

The former dancer, who is set to return for the Strictly Christmas special this year, explained that she lost focus after his death.

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Debbie continued: “When somebody dies, first you feel somebody’s dropped you in the ocean and you’re treading water and you don’t know which direction to take.

“There’s no steering wheel. I’d always been focused, knew what I wanted, where I wanted to go, and suddenly all that went.”

In the remarkably candid interview, she even said that she couldn’t “face” magic anymore.

She said: “Since Paul died I can’t face it. I can’t even bear to think of being on the stage.”

Paul and Debbie married in 1988 and had a loving relationship up to his death in 2016.

Debbie, who was 20 years younger than Paul, was infamously mocked by spoof TV host Mrs Merton who had asked: “What first, Debbie, attracted you to millionaire Paul Daniels?”

In the same interview, Debbie hit back at the gold-digger jibes.

She said: “Even though we were married far longer than most other people in showbusiness, they continued to say I was a gold-digger.”

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It was announced in January of this year that Debbie had secretly been batting breast cancer.

Diagnosed with early stage breast cancer in October 2018, she had surgery to have two numbers removed.

She told The Sun that she believes the stress of Paul’s death caused her cancer.

She explained: “Stress, I think caused mine. I’ve never been through the stress I’ve been through since I lost Paul.

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“It’s not all about sadness. I’ve got a friend who lost her husband four years ago.

“She’s younger than me but she got it [cancer] as well. We both discussed it and said stress.”

Debbie will return to Strictly for the Strictly Christmas Special and reunite with partner Giovanni Bernice on Christmas Day this year.

She had previously competed on the show with Giovanni in 2017 and reached the finals.

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