Bournemouth's former world champion ballroom dancer Karen Hardy is set to put sparkle and excitement back into our weekends as she returns to our TV screens for her fifth series of Strictly Come Dancing.

And she told the Echo she is absolutely thrilled to be partnering celebrity chef Gary Rhodes OBE.

The series, presented by Bruce Forsyth and Tess Daly, kicks off with an introductory programme on September 13, going "live" the following Saturday. From then on until Christmas, there'll be Strictly every day, with the results show back on Sundays and It Takes Two running Monday to Friday.

Cooking up some sizzling dance routines might be a far cry from the day job for Rhodes - who has recently opened Kings Rhodes Brasserie in Christchurch with Rhodes South restaurant at Christchurch Harbour Hotel, Mudeford following soon - but Karen believes he has all the ingredients for success.

"He's driven, dedicated and very, very passionate - but also a perfectionist. He's also used to delivering the goods," she said.

The ex-professional Latin American dancer, who is a former international, United Kingdom Open, British National, European and World Masters champion, has certainly experienced all the highs and lows of competing in the BBC 1 dancing competition. Having retired from competitive dance in 1999 and moving into coaching she made her "comeback" in the third series of Strictly Come Dancing with journalist and presenter Bill Turnbull.

She competed in the 2005 Christmas show with former World Heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield and won the 2006 series with cricketer Mark Ramprakash.

But when she danced in the 2007 series with actor Brian Capron they were eliminated in the first round!

Karen had no idea they had lined up Gary Rhodes to partner her this autumn until the TV producers took her to meet him at the Cumberland Hotel, Marble Arch, where he has a restaurant.

"It's amazing as Gary has strong links with Bournemouth now. Not only has he opened the restaurants but his boy is at university here too!

"He's lovely like Bill (Turnbull). He talks a lot but he is not used to being told what to do. He's worried he will let me down. He's a perfectionist. But I've told him we will have the clock against us. I said I can't make you a world champion dancer but I can make you look good. He's already worried his hands and feet are all wrong!"

Unfortunately for Karen, Gary had already committed to recording another TV show for the next two weeks when they should be training and preparing for this.

"It means everyone else has a two- week head start and it's killing me!

"But Gary is very fit. He's up at 4-4.30am and does weight-lifting. He's done most of the work on his upper body but he needs to do a lot of work on his legs, even though he is used to standing up all day.

"He's a great, great guy and that's what's most important - that we have fun and we must have chemistry. If you are having fun the audience wants to be part of it.

"We are already texting. I've given him homework to do and I will get two half days with him and then five days to put in as many hours as possible before we do the show. It might be a slow start but give me a chance! Everyone knows how competitive I am. Not that I want to win it - I just want to do well. I didn't know how much I loved this show until I went out in week one last time!

"I design all my own dresses. I'll scribble things on the back of a napkin if I get an idea. We go into the dress-makers and take all our designs in. A stylist helps change things if they don't think they will work and a BBC stylist checks the colour etc. They must take account that this is a family show and they don't want to end up with four blues dresses and six black dresses."

When Karen had to bow out in week one last time she had the salt well and truly rubbed into the wound watching other competitors wear the dresses she had designed and lined up for herself!

"Can you believe they ended upon all the other celebrities!" she laughs.

Here's to better luck this time!