Did someone say “FAB-U-LOUS"?

That was the word on the lips of our luckiest members after we gave them an amazing Strictly surprise last week: a meeting with everyone’s favourite grumpy dance judge, Craig Revel Horwood.

Our most recent Blue Light Card VIP event – where members can enter a ballot to win tickets to a special experience – saw us taking a group of lucky winners to see Strictly Come Dancing Live at Nottingham Motorpoint Areana.

Our guests were already delighted to trade their everyday uniforms for their glitziest (is that a real word?) going out gear. But being Blue Light Card, we wanted to do something extra special for our extra special members… so when one of the team got word that Craig Revel Horwood had a special connection to our community, we set to work.

We reached out to Craig (whose partner is a paramedic) and he was MORE than delighted to come and say hello to our disbelieving guests.

He even brought his fellow judge Anton du Beke along! Two Strictly legends for the price of one!

And just look what Craig (who is far less grumpy in real life…) had to say about why he wanted to make a special effort for Blue Light Card holders:

“Darlings,

What an absolute pleasure it was to meet the winners of the Blue Light Card trip to the Strictly Arena Tour. These are the remarkable humans who spend their lives looking after all of us, often in the most challenging, demanding circumstances imaginable and let me tell you, they do it with grace, grit, and hearts of pure gold.

To take a few precious moments to meet them, have a proper natter, share a laugh, and sprinkle a little Strictly sparkle felt like the very least I could do. Their dedication is nothing short of extraordinary, truly worthy of a standing ovation and a 10 from me.

I was genuinely honoured to spend time with them, and my heartfelt thanks go to the fabulous people at Blue Light Card for making it all happen. These heroes deserve every bit of recognition… and then some.

Fab-u-lous, darlings. Absolutely fab-u-lous!” – Craig Revel Horwood

As you can imagine, the members at the event were more than a little blown away – especially as they had no idea they would be meeting some genuine superstars at the event.

And we’re delighted to say that we've had lots of lovely messages to say just how much it meant to them:

Thanks so much for such a wonderful experience.Thoroughly enjoyed everything from the afternoon tea, goody bag, meeting Anton and Craig and watching the fabulous dancers. I’m a huge fan of Anton and still feel star struck from meeting him and Craig. They're both more beautiful in person than when seen on TV. Of course, meeting Anton was my highlight, and I proceeded to inform him he reminds me of a young Dick Van Dyke. Considering this is the only competition I've won in my adult years and as a fan of strictly come dancing, I feel so lucky and privileged to have had this experience.

Thanks so much to everyone.Highlight of my life.” – Michelle, Blue Light Card member

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“In the word of CR-H:

A-Maz-Ing!

Fab-U-Lous!

In-Credi-Ble!

(I made that last one up).

Fantastic event, great food and atmosphere and a treat to meet Craig and Anton. I imagine they were thrilled with their picture of us.” – Neil, Blue Light Card member

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“I just wanted to say a heartfelt thank you for the absolutely amazing experience my mum and I had after winning the Strictly Blue Light competition.

We had such a wonderful evening, from the delicious food to the fantastic seats, everything was perfect. The extra surprise of meeting the judges truly made it even more special and is something we’ll never forget.” – Kate, Blue Light Card member

Want to be a Blue Light Card VIP?

We’re always looking to put on more events where we make some of our members VIPs. Check out our event ballots menu on the homepage of our app or website to see what’s coming up next. Could you be our next VIP winner?

Check out our image gallery from the night!