Susannah Constantine admits demands of Strictly Come Dancing left her in tears

Strictly Come Dancing star Susannah Constantine has told how her first rehearsal for the show drove her to tears and left her feeling “old”.

The What Not To Wear host, 56, said that during her first day of training she felt she had made a “terrible mistake” – as she met her fellow contestants and professional dancers.

After rehearsals she called her husband, businessman Sten Bertelsen, and cried.

Writing in her weekly Strictly diary for the Radio Times, she said: “On the first day, in among the wonderful pro-dancers and my youthful fellow contestants, I’d never felt so ungainly, uncoordinated and, yes… old.

“I was appalling. I looked and felt like a mad woman fleeing her burning home. I’d made a terrible mistake. That night I called my husband in tears.”

The fashion guru, best known for her work alongside Trinny Woodall, received just one point from Craig Revel Horwood during this week’s live show.

Alongside professional partner Anton Du Beke she languished at the bottom of the rankings with a score of 12.

In his Strictly diary, Dr Ranj Singh admitted to struggles of his own, with the doctor and television presenter saying he was finding balancing rehearsals and his hospital work exhausting.

He said: “Not only is dance choreography totally out of my comfort zone, but going from six hours of exhausting rehearsals straight into a 13-hour night shift at the hospital has definitely taken it out of me.

“There have been times when even standing up on my ward rounds has been a struggle, as my legs felt like jelly.”

The 39-year-old is a presenter on ITV’s This Morning where he gives advice to callers. He vowed to continue working as a doctor throughout the series.

He added: “I’ve looked a right plonker trying to practise my steps down the corridors when nobody’s looking.”

Steps’ Faye Tozer and Pussycat Dolls star Ashley Roberts topped the leaderboard for the first week, both scoring 29 out of 40.

Dr Ranj Singh came joint second alongside Red Dwarf star Danny John-Jules and YouTuber Joe Sugg with 27 points.

Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One at 6.30pm on Saturday. The first results show of the series will be on Sunday at 7.15pm.