SHOPPERS were taken a step or two back in time when they spotted a couple of dancers doing The Charleston through the intu Braehead mall.

The shopping centre is sponsoring the popular Strictly Come Prancing fundraising night organised by St Vincent’s Hospice, Johnstone, tomorrow (Friday March 20)
The sell-out charity night is being held at The Normandy Hotel, Renfrew and is based on the Strictly Come Dancing TV show.

The event features ten couples who have volunteered to put in hours of practice learning dance routines from a choreographers, Lisa Marie McLaughlin and Gordon Elliott.
And on Friday night they take to the floor in their different ballroom dance outfits provided by That Looks Good, costume hire based in Greenhill Road, Paisley, hoping to lift the Strictly Come Prancing title.

One couple taking part in the competition – Robert Martin and Jennifer Mahon, from Foxbar, in Paisley – got in some extra practice in front of a rather large audience when they took to the mall for some last minute practice.

Jennifer, 23, a nursery nurse said: “This whole thing has been amazing for me. I’ve been watching Strictly Come Dancing on TV for years and I’ve always wanted to learn how to dance.”

Personal trainer, 22-year-old Robert added: “I know Jennifer from going to the same gym and she persuaded me to be her dance partner in the competition.
“I wouldn’t have agreed if it wasn’t to raise money for the St Vincent’s Hospice charity.
“Learning to dance is really taking me outside my comfort zone, but I’m enjoying it and getting along a lot better than I thought I would.”

Marketing manager for intu Braehead, Lydia Brown said: “The St Vincent’s Hospice do a fantastic job and we’re more than happy to help out by sponsoring their Strictly Come Prancing event.
“The dancers who will be competing have put in a lot of hard work practising and I’ve no doubt they will impress the audience with their new skills.”

Captions
Strictly pix 1: Strictly Come Prancing competitors, Jennifer Mahon and Robert Martin get a perfect 10 score from security supervisor, Gareth Gillies at the intu Braehead mall who are sponsoring the charity event.

Strictly pix 2-5: Strictly Come Prancing competitors, Robert Martin, Jennifer Mahon get in some last-minute practice at the intu Braehead mall who are sponsoring the charity event.

Strictly pic 6: Strictly Come Prancing competitors, Robert Martin, Jennifer Mahon and their choreographer Gordon Elliott get in some last-minute practice at the intu Braehead mall who are sponsoring the charity event.

Author

Founder of Paisley.org.uk in 1998 and constantly strives to change peoples attitudes to the town, Brian is a self described Paisley Digital Champion who promotes Paisley via any means necessary. You can also follow me on X