Dr Who star Alex Kingston has hit out at Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel-Horwood after he made a ‘mean-spirited’ comment about her during her time on the show

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(Image: Prima UK / Davi Venni)

Alex Kingston has criticised Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel-Horwood as “mean-spirited” following remarks he made whilst she competed on the programme. The Dr Who actress partnered with professional dancer Johannes Radebe during her stint.

The duo finished in eighth place as former England footballer Karen Carney and professional Carlos Gu claimed the Glitterball Trophy. Alex’s Halloween performance particularly attracted harsh criticism from Craig.

The 62-year-old danced a salsa to Horny, the 1998 track by Mousse T. Fellow judge Shirley Ballas praised the routine, saying it made her feel “jealous” that she was sitting on the sidelines.

She said: “I’m jealous, I wanna get up there. Horny, horny, horny, honey! I have never seen that kind of rotation!” Whilst fellow judge Anton Du Beke remarked: “Yes, yes yes! Oh man alive!”

Craig, however, offered a harsher assessment, comparing Alex to a woman experiencing a “midlife crisis”. The ER actress has now spoken about Craig’s comments in an interview with Prima magazine.

Alex Kingston

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Alex Kingston has opened up about a comment from Craig Revel Horwood(Image: Prima UK / Davi Venni)

She said: “When I did the Strictly Halloween ‘Horny’ number, I wasn’t fully aware of the scathing critique Craig had given me about looking like a woman who is having a midlife crisis. I didn’t realise that he was saying it or know about the follow-through in terms of people saying, ‘That’s just outrageous, how dare you say something like that?’

“It was a little mean-spirited for Craig to say that and also I just felt like it’s exactly the opposite of what I’m trying to advocate. It’s like, no, if you want to dance and swing a devil’s tail around and you’re in your 90s, do it. I mean, this is your life. So live it!”.

However, Alex praised her dance partner Johannes, describing the South African performer as someone who will remain “in her life forever”. She explained they felt like a “natural fit” from the start.

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Alex added: “My dance partner, JoJo is going to be in my life forever. We really did connect and I always wanted him to be my dance partner because I just loved watching how he danced.

“What I didn’t realise was how similar we are in personality and it was such a special relationship. Starting from zero, when you don’t know anybody at all, and going through something where you are so intimate immediately… Sometimes it’s not natural, but JoJo and I were absolutely a natural fit.”

Alex also revealed she wants to “live in the moment” as she gets older, saying she refuses to “subscribe to norms” regarding how people should “behave at a certain age”.

This philosophy extends to her wardrobe choices, with Alex acknowledging she has “found my own style” that allows her to express herself authentically. She describes this as an approach she has “applied to how I live day to day”.

The April 2026 issue of Prima is now on sale