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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Sarah Robertson

Rugby star Ugo Monye turned Strictly hunk is 'feeling pressure' for Glitterball glory

Strictly hunk Ugo Monye is hoping for divine intervention as he bids for Glitterball glory.

Former England rugby union ace Ugo is a committed Christian and has a Bible app on his phone.

The 38-year-old said: "If I could invite anyone to dinner it would have to be Jesus. I’d sit back and plug in.

"I am most definitely a Christian but I find it hard to go to church at the ­moment as I work weekends.

"I am frustrated I am not able to go, but I have been reading and doing audiobooks.

"I have got a Bible app and every single day I read bite-sized chunks. It is fascinating. Whether people are ­religious or not, the Bible is the most-sold book in the world. It is quite a good read. I am enjoying that.

Ugo Monye and Lucy Monye (WireImage)

"I would find it hard to read from page one, but bite-sized bits keep me connected."

"I am really proud of my faith but it took a little bit of time as the moment you say you are something, people automatically judge you.

"There is a lot of pressure. I screw up all the time – like, all the time – and it would be easy to say you are an atheist.

"But the moment you say you are a Christian, someone says, ‘Oh I saw you a little bit drunk last week’, and I am like, ‘Yeah, I know…’ I am still human and make loads of mistakes and that is cool."

The hunk has joined Strictly Come Dancing (moltonbrown.com)

Ugo married wife Lucy in 2016 and they have daughters Phoenix, four, and one-year-old Ruby.

But despite his macho image, Ugo can often be found playing with Barbie dolls.

He said: "I have got a great bond with my two girls.

"I did have a moment during lockdown as we bought loads of toys and my wife loved having Barbies as a kid and so Phoenix has got a ridiculous amount of Barbies.

"I have to sit and play Barbies with her."

Ugo Monye on the rugby pitch for England (The RFU Collection via Getty Images)

He added on the Inside Out podcast: "When I found out my wife was pregnant, I thought, ‘I ­really want a boy, I really want a boy’ because you just want to create a mini you.

"I was so ignorant and I thought ‘What am I going to do with a girl?’ With a boy, I know exactly what I am going to do – ‘I am going to play football and rugby’ – to the point where we had the scan and did the ultrasound and I was like ‘Oh, is that a penis?’

"I was trying to see things I wanted to see but they said ‘No, it is definitely a girl.’ I have got to say, I am so happy I have got two girls."

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