Paul Killick is a
BritishThe British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, one of the Channel Islands, or of one of the British overseas territories, and their descendants. In a historical context, the term refers to the ancient Britons, the indigenous inhabitants of Great Britain south of the...
former professional ballroom dancer, specializing in Latin dance. He appeared in the first two series of the television show
Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
.
He was invited to join and study at the famous
Royal Ballet SchoolThe Royal Ballet School is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of The Royal Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Royal Opera House in London...
in London, but chose instead to enter into the world of competitive Ballroom and Latin American Dancesport. Under the guidance and tuition of the fourteen times undefeated World Latin American Dancesport Champion, Paul's career was shaped and developed in Dancesport representing Great Britain throughout the world in the divisions of Juvenile, Junior, Youth and Amateur.
Paul Killick is a
BritishThe British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, one of the Channel Islands, or of one of the British overseas territories, and their descendants. In a historical context, the term refers to the ancient Britons, the indigenous inhabitants of Great Britain south of the...
former professional ballroom dancer, specializing in Latin dance. He appeared in the first two series of the television show
Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
.
Early career
He was invited to join and study at the famous
Royal Ballet SchoolThe Royal Ballet School is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of The Royal Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Royal Opera House in London...
in London, but chose instead to enter into the world of competitive Ballroom and Latin American Dancesport. Under the guidance and tuition of the fourteen times undefeated World Latin American Dancesport Champion, Paul's career was shaped and developed in Dancesport representing Great Britain throughout the world in the divisions of Juvenile, Junior, Youth and Amateur. Paul won the title of World Amateur Latin Champion 1993, dancing with Inga Haas.
Professional career
In 1994 Paul began dancing professionally with Oksana Forova. He began to dance with Vibeke Toft in 1996, and they became grand finalists in all major competitions. In October 1998 Paul began dancing with
Karina SmirnoffKarina Smirnoff is a world champion professional dancer.She is a five-time U.S. National Champion, World Trophy Champion, and Asian Open Champion. Smirnoff has won the title at the UK Open, is a three time champion at the US Open, two time champion at the Asian Open, five time champion at the...
, and again became finalists in all major competitions. This partnership ended in July 1999. Paul them teamed up with
Hanna KarttunenHanna Karttunen is a professional Latin American and Exhibition dancer. She also trained in Ballet as a child, having a love of dance from a very early age....
. They danced together for five years and were consistently ranked as one of the best couples in the world, winning numerous world titles, until Paul retired from competitive Latin dancing in 2004.
Post retirement
He now runs his own dance studio in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. After retirement he also took part in the first two series of
Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
. In series 1 he danced with
Verona JosephVerona Joseph is a British actress. She played the role of Jess Griffin in the BBC drama series, Holby City between 2002 and 2006 but made several reappearances during 2006 and 2007. In 2004, she appeared in the first series of the BBC dancing competition Strictly Come Dancing with her...
, reaching the fourth round. In series 2 he danced with
Carol Vorderman Carol Jean Vorderman MBE is an English media personality, best known for co-hosting the popular game show Countdown .-Early life:Vorderman was born in Bedford to a Dutch father and Welsh mother...
and reached the second round.
Charity work
As well as his contributions to dance, Paul has also made himself involved with numerous charities including
ChildlineChildLine is a free 24 hour counselling service for children and young people up to and including 18 in the UK provided by The NSPCC. ChildLine deals with any issue which causes distress or concern, such as child abuse, bullying and sex.-Confidentiality:...
,
Cancer Research UK- About the Charity :Cancer Research UK is a cancer research and awareness charity in the United Kingdom ,formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and Imperial Cancer Research Fund....
and Variety Club.
External links