Strictly star Hamza Yassin on why Glasgow is a great place to spot wildlife

The affable star of CBeebies nature show Let’s Go For a Walk and a string of fascinating wildlife documentaries is this year’s official dark horse of Strictly Come Dancing, and he loves to visit Glasgow. 

“Glasgow is a great city,” he said.

“I spend a lot of time there, usually around Govan and at the BBC, where I do some of my CBeebies work. 

“Down by the river there is so much wildlife and birdlife to spot, from foxes to cormorants. It’s really pretty.” 

Hamza added: “I feel like Scotland is my home. I embraced Scottish culture when I moved here, and Scotland embraced me.” 

It is true, he admits, that once he has the kilt on, he is reluctant to take it off. 

“It is such a beautiful thing to wear,” he marvelled.

“I love the way people smile when they see you in it, too. I’d like to wear it on Strictly if I can.”  

The 32-year-old, who has already topped the leaderboard on the Saturday night dance show and won glowing praise from the judges and viewers alike, defers to his professional partner, Jowita Przystal.  

Hamza and Jowita. Pic: BBC (Image: BBC)

“Perhaps,” she accepts, with a smile.

“That could be manageable.”  

Before he took to the Strictly dancefloor, Hamza was probably best known to pre-schoolers and their families as Ranger Hamza in the CBeebies show Let’s Go for a Walk, and to grown-ups for his Channel 4 shows Scotland: My Life in the Wild and Scotland: Escape to the Wilderness.

He is also a published wildlife photographer and tour guide, and a skilled ornithologist.  

A career in natural history may seem like the obvious choice for a boy who grew up in Sudan fishing in the Nile, spotting lions and giraffes from afar and encountering the odd hyena outside his house.

However, studying zoology was not his original plan.

“I planned to follow my family, who are all medics, into the profession,” he explained.

“I was going to be a dentist like my brother. But when I saw his textbooks, and what he had to do, I realised it was going to be superhard for me. I am dyslexic and it was definitely a factor in my decision, but I also had another dream to follow. 

“So, I told my family I wanted to do wildlife filmmaking, switched to zoology and they were 100% behind me.”  

Hamza and Jowita perform a foxtrot. Pic: BBC (Image: BBC)

Hamza has a degree in zoology with conservation which he gained from Bangor University in 2011, and a Masters degree in biological photography and imaging.   

He was “surrounded by wildlife” in Sudan, he explained.  

“When I came to the UK, when I was around eight-years-old, I realised wildlife is everywhere here too. Perhaps in not such an obvious way, not at first glance, but it is there,” he said.

“Gradually, I learned more about the badgers and foxes and birds - so many amazing birds, some of which are also found in Sudan. That was a reminder of being at home, for me.”  

He added: “My heroes growing up were David Attenborough, I admired his gravitas, his vast knowledge of the natural world; and Steve Irwin, who always seemed to do the impossible, and I wanted to emulate them. I wanted to become a wildlife cameraman.

"I never in a million years imagined I’d work in front of the camera. But to have the opportunity to inspire the younger generation as I was inspired, if I can do that, then I will be a happy man.”  

Hamza was diagnosed with dyslexia in high school.  

“My mum knew something wasn’t quite right, she knew I was clever enough, but that I was struggling with exams," he said.

"It was one of my old teachers, Mrs Strange, who told me that she thought I had dyslexia.   

“I started to cry. I thought it meant I was going to be disabled. She explained it wasn’t going to be a problem, that there were plenty of things that could be done to help.”  

Hamza is a visual learner, stating: "Text messages are hard for me, so I use voice notes, and WhatsApp recordings.

“Modern technology helps a great deal. In the old days, you would do the exam, pass or fail, and that would determine your future.   

“Now, there is much more support and understanding. I see my dyslexia as a gift, a way of being able to see the world differently.” 

Hamza moved to a remote village on the west coast peninsula of Ardnamurchan when he was 21.  

“I went on holiday to the west coast and fell in love with it,” he recalled.

“Two weeks later, I told my parents I had found where I was going to stay, came back and never left. I slept in my car for nine months looking for work and for a place to live.”  

He introduced his Strictly partner to his home village during filming for the early episodes of the series.   

Jowita said: “On the drive, I was thinking 'where on earth am I going?'

“It was absolutely beautiful. The people in Hamza’s village are so lovely.”  

Hamza added: “There are only around 150 of us and they’ve all known me since long before Strictly, so they’re not going to let me get big-headed about it all.

"They are very down to earth and they keep my feet on the ground.”  

Strictly Come Dancing is on BBC One this Saturday at 6.30pm and Strictly: The Results is on Sunday at 7.15pm.