Strictly Christmas Special comes to The Pines

Residents of The Pines care home in Putney shared screen time with Ainsley Harriott and his dancing partner, Karen Clifton, on Christmas Day. The duo dropped into the care home in Putney to do some advance filming for the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special.As part of the rehearsals video tapes, the celebrity chef and his glamorous colleague – who both live in the area – helped The Pines residents to decorate their Christmas tree before performing a sneak preview of their festive Strictly jive routine. The programme, which featured six former Strictly stars, was aired on BBC1 on Christmas Day at 6.45pm.Pratheesh Nair, Home Manager at The Pines, said: “We were delighted to be asked to take part in the filming. Ainsley was a true professional and made everyone feel relaxed. He greeted everybody individually, which was very special."The filming took place in November, but the care team pulled out all the stops to make sure the home was decorated for the occasion and as many residents as possible were in the lounge to enjoy the spectacle.“Karen and Ainsley make a great dance couple and everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon with them both.”To see the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special you can watch it here - The Pines is shown at 7.40 into the programme.