The only time I cooked a Christmas turkey was a disaster

Kaye Adams said she only cooked a turkey once for Christmas, which was a “disaster” as her Strictly Come Dancing colleagues discussed their festive traditions.

The Loose Woman star, who went home with partner Kai Widdrington during the first week of the celebrity dance show, added that it was her annual ritual to go on holiday with her family at Christmas.

The 59-year-old told the December issue of Good Housekeeping: “Last year my partner Ian and I took our daughters Charley and Bonnie to New York and it was wonderful.

“Because of my absence, I don’t have to cook Christmas dinner, which is a real bonus.

“I only cooked a Christmas turkey once – and it was a disaster.”

She added that her Loose Woman colleague and friend Nadia Sawalha had “timed the recipe with military precision” and she “still messed it up”.

In contrast, Kym Marsh says her family likes to “stay and endure the cold,” wearing Christmas jumpers or festive dresses while listening to “cheesy music” and drinking a “glass of bubbly.”

The 46-year-old presenter added: “(My daughter) Emilie and her partner Mikey built a bar in their garden during lockdown, so we go there and when the kids are asleep it's time for the adults to get out the beer pong.

“I have a feeling there might be some dancing this year too.”

Marsh, who stars alongside Graziano Di Prima in the dance show, is also currently filming a remake of the school drama “Waterloo Road.”

Paralympic swimming champion Ellie Simmonds, who works with Nikita Kuzmin on Strictly, said for her Christmas is a time when we “honour the loved ones we have lost”.

The 27-year-old added: “Normally there are 12 of us at the dinner table, but in addition to my grandmother, my Aunt Shirley also died recently and we have felt these losses deeply.

“If I’ve learned anything over the past few years, it’s to cherish every moment with special people.”

Singer-songwriter and radio presenter Fleur East also said: “Getting the call to do Strictly was the best early Christmas present I could have wished for – especially because my father, who passed away two years ago, absolutely loved the show.”

“I knew I had to do it for him.”

The 34-year-old rapper said her “best Christmas” was in 2017 when she traveled to France with her father, mother and sister.

They visited the family of her husband, French star fashion designer Marcel Badiane-Robin, and also visited sights, Disneyland Paris and the Eiffel Tower.

East and her partner Vito Coppola finished in joint third place in the latest episode of Strictly with a score of 32 for their performance of Waterloo by Abba.

The December issue of Good Housekeeping is on sale now.

“Strictly” returns to BBC One on Saturday.