Janette Manrara has reacted to the very sad news that Dance Attic Studios boss Andrew Corbet Burcher has passed away, aged 70. Taking to Instagram to pay tribute to him, Janette wrote: "Such sad news. We have known Andrew for 11 years, and he was a very special part of our engagement.
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"As they said themselves, he was @danceatticstudios…. Always greeting you with a smile and a cheeky joke. We will miss him very much. They don’t make many like him anymore. All of our love to his loved ones during this difficult time." She added a love heart emoji.
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Dance Attic Studios shared their own tribute, writing: "Andrew Corbet Burcher. 1951 – 2021. It is with great sadness that we have to announce that our dear Dad, Andrew, passed away on the morning of 30th December 2021. To many, Andrew was the Dance Attic. He will be greatly missed. Lots of love Alex, Poppy and the Dance Attic Family."
Fellow Strictly stars and celebs were quick to pay their respects, with Karen Hauer writing: "Nooo! So saddened by this news. Andrew was so welcoming and I always loved chatting with him. He will be missed. Sending all the love." Gorka Marquez added: "So sorry to hear this sad news... sending all the love," while Ashley Roberts commented with a prayer emoji. Oritsé Williams replied to the studio's post announcing the sad news, writing: "This is such sad news. Thank you Andrew for putting up with me as a cheeky boy with a big dream. This was where I formed the band that became JLS."
Janette shared a tribute to Andrew on Instagram
Fellow dancer Claudimar Neto added: "This breaks my heart, what a soul, we will miss you, thank you for everything, the laughs, the chats, the wise words. Rest in peace." Neil Jones and Johannes Rabade also simply commented with broken heart emojis.
Janette and her husband Aljaz have previously opened up about how they are bonded by their love of dance, and the It Takes Two presenter recently paid a heartwarming tribute to her husband with a snap of the pair in a rehearsal room, where Janette previously revealed that the late Andrew helped with their proposal.
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She wrote: "This photo was taken in the room where @aljazskorjanec proposed to me; a dance studio. Dancing is how we met and fell in love. It‘s hard to express just how much our love is bounded by it.
Andrew had a helping hand in Aljaz and Janette's engagement
"I have missed dancing w/ him more than I can explain; especially in such a beautiful ballroom like the one at @bbcstrictly. Tonight, for one night only, we are back in that beautiful ballroom dancing together… and as if that was not enough, w/ one of our favourite artists @teddysphotos It was truly a special moment for us."
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