Ginger and I have taken it upon ourselves to be more organised with our chats to the SUBLDS committee. The holidays are over and we have decided to get back to work entertaining everyone.

What is your Name?

Doug, Dougie or Douglas. I answer to any of them.

What do you see your role in the committee being?

I’m here to make sure no one else on the committee gets buried under a pile of work that they can’t all do themselves

How long have you been dancing, what level are you now, and on a scale of 1- 4 if someone was stuck learning a move would you be able to help them? 1 being more or less completely useless and 4 being Emma C.

I’ve been dancing for a year and a bit now. I started in first year but stopped after about half a term, but I just couldn’t stay away! So I started again last year and have kept it going since. I’d probably go for being a 2 on the scale of helping someone who is stuck, largely because there are lots of moves out there that I haven’t learned myself!

What is your vice of choice?

Poker probably. But since I’m not great at it its probably more losing money to my friends who play poker.

What degree do you do? Why do you do it?

I do aerospace engineering. Because the little boy in me who thought space was cool but didn’t understand it grew up, began to understand it and still thought it was cool.

What is your best/most entertaining memory of your first year at uni dancing? Do you have any tips for beginners to have a similar amount of fun?

UEA competition, they take down all the dress restrictions so if you have something “too fancy” for most competitions, you can still wear that, and there are so many things you can enter even at beginner level.

Recommend 3 songs, A movie, A book and what is your favorite piece of cutlery?

OK three songs: Rumble and Sway by Jamie N Commons, Amazing by Foxes and the original version of Tainted Love by Gloria Jones.

For the movie, I’ll go with Independence Day: Resurgence because that was one I really enjoyed this summer and

the book I’ll go for Vintage Stuff by Tom Sharpe. While it has very 80s sensibilities (i.e. none at all), no one can take a situation and turn it into a funny mess quite like Sharpe.

As for favourite bit of cutlery, it’s got to be a rubber spatula, because nothing can get the last bits of brownie mix out of a mixing bowl like a rubber spatula.

What is the coolest thing you have ever done? What do you wish people would ask you about?

I flew a plane, all on my own… before I could even drive a car. I don’t know what people should ask me, pretty much anything so long as it’s not to “teach me how to Dougie” because I still don’t know myself.

What event do you most look forward to this year in SUBLDS? If it’s not strictly you have got it wrong!

I don’t know Fred, from last year it sounds like Strictly will be a lot of work of me! Probably Bath ball and the Dinner Dance but being able to do more of the dances well (or in the case of Bath ball; at all) than last year.

why do you keep dancing at SUBLDS, when you have a degree to do, It seems irresponsible to me?

You’re not my supervisor!

Any final words for the readers?

Try as much SUBLDS events as you can, it’s all good stuff!

Thanks Dougie I can’t wait to see you pulling out all those moves of yours in the near future!