Sarah Julian,BBC Radio WM,
Josh Sandiford,West Midlandsand
Oprah Flash,West Midlands
BBC
Karen Carney and Carlos Gu’s football-themed jive to One Way Or Another by Blondie earned them a standing ovation
The winner of this year’s Strictly Come Dancing, Karen Carney, has thanked people in her hometown of Birmingham for their support.
The former Lioness beat Love Islander Amber Davies and social media star George Clarke after winning the public vote in Saturday’s live final to become the first footballer to lift the glitterball trophy.
Born and bred in Solihull, well-wishers have said the former Birmingham City FC players’ win has helped to “raise the profile” of the city.
“I just want to say thank you to everyone, you’ve been great, supporting both me and Carlos, and you’ve helped make my dreams come true, ” she told BBC Radio WM listeners.
Carney became the first the first footballer to lift the glitterball trophy
Carney added: “I never thought I would win it, and I certainly still can’t believe that it’s actually happened, because it was just such a joy for me to be on the show.
“In the final on Saturday I just went for it, had the time of my life, just gave absolutely everything, celebrated every moment and I didn’t think about anything else, it just feels so surreal.”
Paired with professional dancer Carlos Gu for the BBC One competition, they performed routines including a show dance to Inner Smile by Texas, and an Argentine Tango to Red Right Hand by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.
They also performed a football-themed jive to One Way Or Another by Blondie, earning them a standing ovation – and their second perfect score of the night.
The Brummie beat Love Islander Amber Davies and social media star George Clarke after winning the public vote
The pundit said: “I’m a normal girl from Birmingham that just followed her passion and dreams and never thought any of it would come true.
“Strictly is much bigger than a glitter ball, when you hear little girls and boys they’re saying they could do whatever they want, it just means everything.”
Her career spans 144 caps for England, as well as stints with Birmingham City, Chelsea and Arsenal’s women’s teams.
She became a pundit for TNT and ITV after retiring in 2019.
Rebecca Crawford is among the fans who have thrown their support behind Carney
She plans to spend Christmas in Birmingham with her family and friends.
With a special message for her hometown, she told BBC Radio WM: “Thank you, Birmingham, for everything you guys have supported.
“This city is really special, so we keep going and we keep supporting each other, and we keep rebuilding it with all our hearts, and we back each other the whole way. “
Support for Karen flooded in from Birmingham city centre as well wishers shared their messages with BBC Radio WM.
Kelly Rogers said the win helped put the city on the map
Rebecca Crawford, 54, added: “She’s got no dance experience and to go on that show out of your comfort zone. It’s different when you’re on the pitch playing football and have all the fans supporting you but on telly, it’s very different so I think she did amazing well.”
Kelly Rogers, from Wednesbury, said: “Well done Karen, we’re really proud of you. It’s nice to have local people win things.
Zoe Reddy, 56, said: “It raises the profile of Birmingham, it shows that in Birmingham we all support each other.”
Zoe Reddy said the competition win helped to show the way people from Birmingham support each other