Actor Larry Lamb takes part in the Strictly Come Dancing TV Christmas special

Larry Lamb is the fourth celebrity contestant confirmed to take part in the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special.

The actor, who played Mick Shipman in the hit sitcom Gavin & Stacey, will dance alongside professional dancer Nadiya Bychkova when he takes to the dancefloor in the festive version of the BBC One show.

The 75-year-old presents the documentary series “Britain By Bike” on Channel 5 with his son George and regularly appears on “The One Show” with segments on history and heritage.

Lamb also starred in EastEnders, leaving Walford in dramatic fashion on Christmas Day 2009 when his character Archie Mitchell was murdered by a mysterious killer who smashed a bust of Queen Victoria over his head.

To win the Strictly trophy, Lamb will perform a Christmas-inspired routine in front of judges Anton Du Beke, Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood, as well as the voting audience.

He will be one of six celebrities competing, with those announced so far including soap actress Alexandra Mardell with her professional partner Kai Widdrington, DJ Rickie Haywood-Williams with Luba Mushtuk, and podcaster Rosie Ramsey, who will be partnered with Neil Jones.

When his participation was announced on BBC's The One Show, Lamb spoke of his dance partner Bychkova: “She is an exceptional teacher and a very supportive person. What I didn't realise is that she not only had to teach me a dance routine, she had to teach me how to dance first.”

“I've been jumping around for years, but this is a whole new world and it's just extraordinary.”

The actor said he enjoyed learning to dance “a lot more” than he thought he would.

He said: “The first day I thought, 'That's it, I'm out of here.' She got me to the point where I feel very, very confident. We're dancing an American Smooth. It's a busy dance. I'm in, I'm really surprised I'm in.”

When asked why he turned down a chance to take part in Strictly five years ago, Lamb replied: “They found out I had a big problem, a serious condition where a disc was about to sever my spinal cord.”

“Arms everywhere, legs everywhere, they finally got it sorted. The operation was a great success, but the nerve damage has developed over the years. It took me five years to be able to walk upright again.

“One of the jokes at the time was: 'If I keep working on this, you never know if I might end up on Strictly.'”

– The Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Christmas Day.