Strictly star's disappointment with show revealed with loneliness confession

Sir Bruce Forsyth was one of the most beloved stars of the small screen, but the TV legend admitted that he didn't enjoy his time on Strictly Come Dancing as much as fans may have thought

Sir Bruce Forsyth opened up about his experiences on Strictly Come Dancing, laying bare his truth of feeling "very lonely" behind the scenes of the glamorous show. Despite hosting one of Britain's most beloved TV programmes, Brucie revealed in 2015 that he didn't get to socialise or forge connections as much as viewers might have imagined.

In a candid chat with the Mail on Sunday, in 2015, he confessed: "I never enjoyed it as much as people thought... The problem for me was that I didn't get to meet anyone in the show, or really get to know anyone very well – not even backstage."

He went further into detail about his isolated ten year stint on set saying, "I'd do my warm-up as everyone else was arriving. Then I'd do the introduction and stand with the dancers but I'd just have a tiny bit of interaction with the judges and the celebrities because they had to judge and the stars were all out of breath."

Bruce also touched on his fleeting exchanges with co-host Tess Daly: "I had a bit of interaction with lovely Tess at the beginning and end, but that was it. And what I like is actually the interaction. It's what I do. I found Strictly very lonely."

The beloved entertainer, who sadly passed away in 2017, felt disconnected from the hive of activity usually associated with such a high-profile gig, reports OK!.

He also mentioned that he had wanted to add more comedic moments to the show, particularly with his stair antics: "Every time I went off-camera I'd run up the stairs to be out of sight so the dancers could start, and then I'd have to run down again, then up and down all night", the Mirror reports. However, he understood that "it just wasn't that sort of show. I was there to be a presenter."

Sir Bruce, who passed away in 2017 at the age of 89, presented the show alongside Tess Daly from 2004 before leaving in 2014. Looking back on his departure he felt he made the right decision: "When I left I knew it was the right time. Leave it at the top. I just didn't want to do it any more."