Who is Brendan Cole? Meet the former Strictly dancer and X Factor Celebrity 2019 contestant

12 October 2019, 16:05

The X Factor Celebrity starts a new era of the reality competition, with one contestant being a former Strictly Come Dancing legend.

Former Strictly professional Brendan Cole is teaming up with actor Jeremy Edwards for the singing contest, but what is his background?

Who is Brendan Cole and where have we seen him before?

Strictly Come Dancing fans will recognise Brendan after he appeared on the show for 15 years as a professional dancer.

He won the very first series of the show with Natasha Kaplinsky, but was dropped from the show after 15 series.

The X Factor Celebrity 2019: Confirmed celebrity lineup, start date, judges and all the details

Can Brendan Cole sing?

Brendan is known as a dancer, so fans are yet to discover if he can sing.

A source told The Sun: "For Brendan’s part, he’s excited about the prospect of a new challenge.

"It’s also not lost on him that appearing on a rival channel in a big prime time slot is a bit of a two fingers up at his old bosses at the BBC."

Who is the other band member, Jeremy Edwards?

Brendan Cole, 43, and Jeremy Edwards, 48, have been good friends for over 10 years having met at a Capital Radio event.

Jeremy is best known for playing Kurt Benson in Hollyoaks. Holby City fans will also recognise him from the medical show.

As a group, they will be called Cole and Edwards, based on their surnames.

How old is Brendan Cole and is he married?

Brendan celebrated his 43rd birthday in 2019.

He was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, and moved to the United Kingdom when he was 18.

In 2010, Cole married British model Zoe Hobbs. They welcomed their first child, daughter Aurelia, on Christmas Day 2012. In March 2018, Zoe gave birth to their son Danté.