Strictly Come Dancing judge Anton Du Beke says his father stabbed him in the leg and stomach during an attack at their family home in Kent when he was in his mid-20s. Du Beke, who discusses the episode in his memoir “Steps in Time: The Moments that Made Me,” describes his father as a violent alcoholic and says the injury was serious enough that he spent four days in hospital.
Du Beke says the stabbing happened on Boxing Day in Sevenoaks, after he was on the phone with his dance teacher. He later stopped a police car and police officers took his father away, adding that he never saw him again after the incident. He also says the attack and his father’s arrest contributed to his parents’ divorce.
Across outlets, the reporting largely focuses on the same core details: the date and location, the injuries, the account that he was taken to hospital, and Du Beke’s later estrangement. Several outlets highlight that he felt “embarrassed” about initially hiding the real reason for his injury by saying it was a torn hamstring, while others frame the story around the “never laid eyes on him again” claim.
