Hugh Sheridan and Jamie Durie were lucky enough to travel to Virginia to relive the infamous summer vacation at the Kellerman Resort for The Real Dirty Dancing – and they had just as much fun as the stars did in the original movie!
“There were plenty of antics,” Hugh, 34, tells TV WEEK. “We were always trying to get the professional dancers from the Virginia crew to come over. It was just like in the movie with the staff quarters. I have lots of funny videos!”
“Let’s just say there were quite a few laughs every night and many beers were had between the four of us [Jamie, Hugh, actor Firass Dirani and AFL great Jude Bolton all stayed in shared accommodation],” Jamie, 49, adds. “It was like being in a frat house!”
Having both lived in the States, Jamie says it was great to reconnect with his friend Hugh.
“We’re old drinking buddies from Hollywood, so we used to catch up quite a bit,” he explains. “We had so much fun. We didn’t stop laughing.”
Though the House Rules judge admits he’s “very comfortable on stage” – Jamie first made a name for himself as part of an international male stripping group – he admits returning to the dance floor took some getting used to.
“I haven’t learnt a dance routine since I did Dancing With The Stars, which was 10 years ago,” Jamie explains. “I was a bit rusty.”
By the end of filming, he’d had lost 3kg.
“It stripped the weight off me,” Jamie says. “We were all pinching each other, saying, ‘Wow, my jeans are baggy!'”
Along with dancing his way on to our screens, Jamie is an avid fan of Yoga and spin classes.
“Yoga has been in my life for 20 years. It is without a doubt the most important part of my fitness regime. Its a form of meditation,” he reveals.
“Lots of yoga, surfing, soft sand running and I do a lot of spin classes.
“I tune into these spin classes every morning in NYC. I just love it, the music, I think it’s a great low impact sport that gets your hearts rate up without putting stress on your body.”
When asked about his sex symbol status, Jamie exclaims: “Am I?! I don’t know.”
“I was more thinking about the fact my daughter pissing herself with laughter when she sees this show,” he adds.
Jamie reveals his daughter was “in stitches” when he showed her photos from the set.
“She was like, ‘Dad, this is like turning back the clock. Come on!'”
The Real Dirty Dancing airs Sunday, 7pm, and Monday, 7:30pm, on Channel Seven.
