Print this articleSend to friend

Staff at Communications Agency Rock Kitchen Harris have brought Christmas cheer to a national learning disabilities charity by taking part in a Strictly Come Dancing style cha cha cha challenge.

The Leicester based agency raised £350 for the Macintyre Charity, which provides care and support for people with learning disabilities, and the sum will go towards giving residents at the charity's Leicester care home a fantastic Christmas party on 13th December. To raise this amount, RKH’s advertising account managers, designers and web developers all followed a week of intense tuition in the cha cha cha and then showcased their new dance skills in front of a board of adjudicators, including internationally renowned ballroom and Latin judge Bryan Allen, owner of 118 Dance Studio on Charles Street, Leicester.

The dance couples were tutored by the agency's own in-house dance star and PR executive, Tamara Thompson, who with dance partner Alex Hobbs currently reign as the Northern Universities Amateur Latin Champions.

It was a close competition, as the media professionals went head to head and toe to toe in the battle to be acclaimed the agency's greatest dancers, but thankfully there was no murder on the dance floor, although one pink clad duo's skills ruffled the judge's feathers - with their dance partnership described “like two flamingoes – “one alive and one stuffed”. Head judge Bryan Allen, who has previously sat on the same

panel as the real Strictly Come Dancing's resident judge Len Goodman in professional competitions, gave his verdict along with RKH Director Peter Kitchen and Rachelle Russell, a representative from the MacIntyre Charity. Eventual winners were pronounced as account manager Rick Bywater and PR manager Stephanie Cornwall, whose dance routine was described as “fabulous” and “perfect”, including some “nice turns.”

John Harris, Rock Kitchen Harris Director, said: “At first when they began their practice it was more Footlost than Footloose but they all performed really well on the day – give or take the odd stuffed flamingo!

“We always choose to do an event like this each year in order to benefit a charitable cause and with Tamara's dancing experience and the current appetite for all things ballroom, we thought this might be a fun and topical thing to do. The staff enjoyed taking part and we raised a nice sum for a really good cause.”

The Strictly Come Dancing challenge follows on from the success of Rock Kitchen Harris’ 2007 charity initiative - a moustache growing competition - which raised £1,000 for the Rainbows charity.

Rock Kitchen Harris is a full service agency offering a comprehensive portfolio of services including public relations, advertising, web design and web-site management.