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Leonard Gordon "Len" Goodman (born 24 April 1944) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 professional dance
Dance

Dance is an art form that generally refers to Motion of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of Emotional expression, social social interaction or presented in a spirituality or performance setting....
 judge
Judge

A judge, or arbiter of justice, is a lead official who presides over a court of law,which is operated by the local, state, and/or federal government....
 and teacher and former dancer. He runs a ballroom and Latin dancing school in Dartford
Dartford

Dartford is the principal town in the Dartford . It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, 16 miles east south-east of central London....
, Kent
Kent

Kent is a Counties of England in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the River Thames estuary....
, UK
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
.

man was born in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green

Bethnal Green is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. Bethnal Green is located north east of Charing Cross....
, London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, the son of Louisa (née Eldridge) and Len Goodman. He started dancing at the age of 19 after a short time as an engineering apprentice (for Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff

Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Diversification Heavy industry company specialising in shipbuilding, ship breaking, offshore construction, Modular design, Civil engineering and marine engineering, renewables and project management, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
 in Woolwich
Woolwich

Woolwich is a suburb in south-east London, England in the London Borough of Greenwich, on the south side of the River Thames, though the tiny exclave of North Woolwich is on the north side of the river....
). He tried dancing only in an attempt to recover from a foot injury sustained whilst playing football.






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Leonard Gordon "Len" Goodman (born 24 April 1944) is a British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 professional dance
Dance

Dance is an art form that generally refers to Motion of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of Emotional expression, social social interaction or presented in a spirituality or performance setting....
 judge
Judge

A judge, or arbiter of justice, is a lead official who presides over a court of law,which is operated by the local, state, and/or federal government....
 and teacher and former dancer. He runs a ballroom and Latin dancing school in Dartford
Dartford

Dartford is the principal town in the Dartford . It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, 16 miles east south-east of central London....
, Kent
Kent

Kent is a Counties of England in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the River Thames estuary....
, UK
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
.

Life and career

Goodman was born in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green

Bethnal Green is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. Bethnal Green is located north east of Charing Cross....
, London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, the son of Louisa (née Eldridge) and Len Goodman. He started dancing at the age of 19 after a short time as an engineering apprentice (for Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff

Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Diversification Heavy industry company specialising in shipbuilding, ship breaking, offshore construction, Modular design, Civil engineering and marine engineering, renewables and project management, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
 in Woolwich
Woolwich

Woolwich is a suburb in south-east London, England in the London Borough of Greenwich, on the south side of the River Thames, though the tiny exclave of North Woolwich is on the north side of the river....
). He tried dancing only in an attempt to recover from a foot injury sustained whilst playing football. He turned professional, won various competitions, and retired from dancing after winning the British Championships at Blackpool
Blackpool

Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Lying along the coast of the Irish Sea, it has a population of 142,900, making it the North West England#Important cities and towns settlement in North West England behind Manchester, Liverpool and Warrington....
 in his late twenties. He married his dancing partner Cherry,although they later divorced, He later went out with Lesley and They had one son together, James William Goodman, they had a house together however they broke up and he later married his current wife, Sue.

During the 1970s and early 1980s his dance school in Dartford was home to a very popular Saturday night youth disco which helped to keep the majority of Dartford's young people out of trouble.

He is currently head judge on the BBC television series Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing

Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom dance and Latin dancing dances....
, hosted by Bruce Forsyth
Bruce Forsyth

'Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson' Order of the British Empire is a British people BAFTA award-winning showman and entertainer, who achieved celebrity status on the series Sunday Night at the London Palladium, and became a household name in the UK, going on to present the television series The Generation Game, Play Your Cards Right, ...
 and Tess Daly
Tess Daly

Helen Elizabeth Tess Daly , is a British television presenter, and is married to the presenter Vernon Kay....
. He is known for having a cheeky sense of humour, often lacing his comments with double entendres. He is also known for his short temper. He also makes regular appearances on the show's extra programme Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two
Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two

Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two is a United Kingdom television programme, the companion show to the popular BBC One programme Strictly Come Dancing....
, as well as the show's Christmas specials and one-off show Strictly Ice Dancing (which was an Ice skating
Ice skating

Ice skating is moving on ice by use of ice skates. It can be done for a variety of reasons, including leisure, traveling, and various sports. Ice skating occurs both on specially prepared Ice rink and outdoor tracks, as well as on naturally occurring bodies of frozen water such as lakes and rivers....
 version of the regular show). He also owns a dance studio in his hometown of Dartford, Kent, where he still lives.

The popularity created by Strictly Come Dancing has earned him a place as head judge on the American version of Strictly, called Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars (US TV series)

Dancing with the Stars is a reality show airing on American Broadcasting Company in the United States. The show is based on the United Kingdom BBC Television series Strictly Come Dancing and is part of BBC Worldwide's international Dancing with the Stars franchise....
, currently running on the ABC television network.

Goodman's catchphrase has become the bellowing of the word "Seven" when he awards contestants 7 points for their performance.

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