A Marathon, not a Sprint

Ashley is here for the long-haul.

How did Ashley feel her performance went on Saturday? 'Obviously I wanted to prove that I was worth my place in the competition,' she tells us. 'I really had to control my nerves because I can go a bit overboard.'

'I had my beautiful dancer though, and having another person on stage does relax you a bit more. When they asked if I minded having him I was playing it cool, but when he did a body roll against me in rehearsals I was so embarrassed my face went the same colour as my hair!'

'I think I did much better this week and I enjoyed it so much more. My comments from the panel were better, so hopefully they can see that I'm on a journey here and will keep growing into the part.'

Does having support in the audience help her? 'I have such good support, it's amazing,' she says. 'I have my family and friends and people I don't even know! And I don't think they'll be able to afford their rent soon as they're spending so much on t-shirts, wigs and banners! I even got a letter from the First Minister of Scotland – I feel like the whole country is behind me.'

And how does she feel about what the panel thought? 'I was pleased with the panel's comments, but I'm glad in a way that they weren't all amazing as it means I want to do better next week. I'm going to have to put the hours in this week, but I don't mind because it's what I love doing. I'm not worried, this is a marathon, not a sprint.'