Martin Clunes on bizarre way he knows Arlene Phillips as pair met in 'wilder days'

Actor Martin Clunes and dance legend Arlene Phillips share a surprise connection that even their die-hard fans may not know about.

In an old episode of ITV's Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh, which aired live again this morning (September 22), the pair unveiled the unlikely story of how they met for the first time.

Former Strictly alumn Arlene Phillips was seated next to the Doc Martin actor as Alan quizzed them about their respective pasts. Conversation turned to dancing, as Alan pulled up a clip of Martin in his role as Gary Strang in Men Behaving Badly performing some "dad" dance moves while clutching a pint of beer.

"Arlene, you say everyone can dance. I think we've just proved you wrong," Alan joked after the clip played out.

"How dare you," interjected Martin, as Arlene responded: "I have to say... we will rock you... there's a lot of headbanging. So, it is claimed as a dance somewhere."

Turning back to Martin, Alan asked if the actor had any other dance moves up his sleeve. "Only dad dancing then Martin, nothing more elaborate?" he quizzed.

"Oh yes," Martin answered. "They've asked me to go on Strictly but I don't need to because I'm a lovely dancer already," he divulged.

Arlene chuckled at his response, calling it an "expert answer". Her praise for Martin prompted Alan to pry into the pair's relationship, sparking a major revelation from Martin about how they initially met, and it wasn't on TV.

"I used to share a flat with Arlene's old man," Martin smirked, as the pair burst into laughter. Arlene added: "How random is that?".

She continued: "In those wilder days, I would say now... I think we've both tamed," prompting another bout of laughter from the trio.

The repeat episode aired the morning after Strictly Come Dancing's first live show of the season hit TV screens. Choreographer Arlene was a judge on the hit BBC dancing show between 2004 and 2008. Her seat on the panel was taken by singer and TV presenter Alesha Dixon in the 2009 series.