Strictly Come Dancing: Who’s been hit by the curse?
By Cherry Wilson
Peter was interviewed by Francesca Gillet, from BBC News Online on the so-called “curse of Strictly”, which is the tendancy for the Pro-Celeb couples to fall in love (or at least have a quick snog). Peter suggested that the curse might be a natural response to five aspects of dance, all grounded in the scientific literature. They are: social bonding from shared rythmic movements, shared experience of emotional highs and lows in dance, prolonged physical intimacy through close-hold dancing, engaging in an activity (dance) which Darwin argued was part of the human mate-selection process and dealing with the in-group/out-group dynamics which are amplified by the structure of the show. [Read more]
Peter spoke about the Curse of Strictly on BBC News Online, BBC Radio Wales and BBC Three Counties Radio.
Dr Peter Lovatt spent over 20 years working as a university academic. He set up the Dance Psychology Lab to understand dance and dancers from a psychological, scientific perspective. His research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and his teaching has been highly commended. Find out more about his academic life here
Peter Lovatt is an author and he has written two books: “The Dance Cure, the surprising secret to being smarter, stronger, happier” was first published by Short Books in the UK in 2020. “Dance Psychology, the science of dance and dancers” was first published in the UK in 2018. Peter has also writes commissioned articles. Find out more about his writing life here
Peter Lovatt is an international keynote speaker who delivers groovy keynotes which inspire, entertain and get minds and pulses racing. Peter has given keynote talks around the world and he has worked with organisations from different sectors, for example, in the banking, tech, creative, education, health and automotive industries. Find out more about his keynotes here
Peter Lovatt is a founding director of the Movement in Practice (MiP) Academy. The MiP Academy is a specialist provider of education in the psychology of movement and dance. MiP Academy is an accredited provider of Continuing Professional Development (CPD), Continuing Education (CE) and Continuing Professional Education (CPE), providing both anytime learning and scheduled face-to-face learning opportunities. Find out more about MiP Academy here
Peter Lovatt became known as Dr Dance through his TV and media work. He first appeared as Dr Dance on the Graham Norton Show (BBC) in 2008 and Dr Dance has since made over 1000 appearances across all major UK TV and radio networks, in magazines and newspapers and on stage. Dr Dance has made several stage shows, including “Dance Dr Dance” (2010), “INSPIRED Psychology Danced” (2011) and “Boogie on the Brain” (2018). Find out more about Dr Dance here
Peter Lovatt lives on the beautiful north Norfolk coast with his partner and their two sons.
Find out more about Peter’s latest news here