Oti Mabuse has said she cried about her large breasts when having her first wardrobe fitting for Strictly Come Dancing because she felt she looked “massive”.
Mabuse said she has long struggled with having 28GG breasts, but that being on the dancing show helped to boost her confidence when comparing herself to the other dancers because there was no discrimination over her figure.
The professional dancer opened up about her body issues ahead of a new role on ITV’s Lorraine.
Mabuse will join the morning programme to front a new series about body confidence called Body Confidential.
In the series, the 28-year-old will talk about issues she has faced personally, while giving advice about how people of different ages, shapes and sizes can feel confident.
Speaking ahead of her first appearance, Mabuse, who joined Strictly in 2015, said: “Strictly opened a lot of doors to me. I remember fitting my first bra and I was crying.
“I was like ‘This looks so bad and I look so massive compared to the other girls’.
“Nobody picked on me for it and no-one discriminated against me for it and nobody said anything in a negative way and I think that helped me and my self- esteem and my nerves about being out in a bra with sequins on.”
Mabuse, who also appeared on the BBC’s The Greatest Dancer this year as a dance captain, said her struggle with her body started at a young age.
She said: “All my family has always had big boobs. I was hitting puberty way before other girls were.
“As a 12 year-old girl going in and saying ‘I’m looking for a B cup’, that kind of sounds unrealistic.
“I’m lucky that my mum has the same issue and she was able to teach me how to deal with it. As a young girl I was always wearing jerseys over it.”
Oti Mabuse’s stint on Lorraine starts on Thursday from 8.30am on ITV.