Who’s got Bill Bailey being a regular skydiver on their 2022 bingo card?
If so, cross it off, because the comedian has revealed he has a real passion for skydiving.
Bill, who won Strictly Come Dancing in 2020 with professional partner Oti Mabuse, was first persuaded by his 12-year-old son to jump while on tour in Australia.
After his first experience of falling from around 10,000 feet, the actor admitted he has since completed ‘loads of jumps.’
Appearing on The One Show on Friday, Bill, 57, said: ‘My son got me into it.
‘I was on tour in Australia and in Australia, the age is a lot younger, you can do it at 12, in the UK it is 16.
‘So in Australia when he was 12 he said he wanted to do it, so he got me into it.’
Bill, who recently joined comedian presenter Joe Lycett in Iceland for Channel 4’s Travel Man, admitted he was ‘terrified’ when he first went up in the plane, which we definitely would be too.
He said: ‘I went into the plane first thinking I will get to go last and he [my son] will go first and then they switched everyone around in the plane so I was out first, that backfired horribly.’
But, he’s become quite the thrill-seeker, admitting that skydiving is ‘brilliant.’
‘The first one is quite terrifying but then it is such an amazing adrenaline rush, and I thought, “I have got to do this again,” and I do it regularly now, I have done loads of jumps,’ he added.
Co-host of the BBC One show Alex Jones suggested a programme should be made about his experiences.
The presenter added that he isn’t sure whether he’d do it now, since he’s ‘getting a bit more nervous’ as he grows older.
Following his epic Strictly win in series 18, Bill recently encouraged men to take up dancing.
Chatting to John Bishop earlier this month, Bill said he ‘sincerely hoped’ his win – which was watched by 13million viewers – would inspire other men to put on their dancing shoes.
He admitted that ‘a lot of men of our vintage get a bit self-conscious on the dance floor’ as they’re aware of people calling it ‘dad dancing,’ which he thinks puts them off.
‘But actually what I hope me winning did was encourage a lot of men and women of that age to get up and dance,’ he said.
‘Lots of dance schools noticed that people were signing up, loads of blokes singing up for dance classes because they think if Bill can do it, then I can do it.’
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