Jay McGuiness

James "Jay" McGuiness (born 24 July 1990) is a British singer and songwriter, best known as a vocalist with boy band The Wanted. On 19 December 2015, partnered with Aliona Vilani, he won the 13th series of BBC's Strictly Come Dancing.

Jay McGuiness
McGuiness in 2012
Background information
Birth nameJames McGuiness
Born (1990-07-24) 24 July 1990
OriginNewark, Nottinghamshire, England.
GenresPop
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
InstrumentsVocals
Years active2009–present
Associated actsThe Wanted

On 10 October 2017, McGuiness joined the first series of Celebrity Hunted along with former bandmate Siva Kaneswaran, they won the series on 31 October 2017.

Early life

McGuiness grew up in Newark, Nottinghamshire,[1] and attended All Saints RC School, Mansfield.[2] He has a fraternal twin brother, Thomas and three other siblings.

From the age of 12, he pursued his love of performing by attending the Charlotte Hamilton School of Dance in Newark. As his love for the performing arts grew he attended the prestigious Midlands Academy of Dance and Drama in Carlton near Nottingham.[3]

Career

McGuiness is known as one fifth of Anglo-Irish boy band The Wanted. He has been a member of the band since 2010, alongside Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Tom Parker and Nathan Sykes.

On 2 December 2017, McGuiness appeared on BBC's Pointless Celebrities.[4]

In October 2018 McGuiness appeared at the London Palladium in the show Rip it Up the 60s, alongside Harry Judd, Aston Merrygold and Louis Smith. The show then transferred to the Garrick Theatre.[5][6]

Strictly Come Dancing

On 24 August 2015, McGuiness was confirmed as a celebrity contestant in the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing. He was partnered with professional dancer Aliona Vilani.[7][8] In the third week of competition, he was awarded a total of 37 points out of 40, the highest week 3 score in the history of the competition, for his jive. He also received the first 10 of the series. In week 6, he danced an American Smooth to "Li'l Red Riding Hood" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs and scored 34, putting him in second place by only one point.[9] In week 10 he danced a tango to "When Doves Cry" by Prince and scored 38. In Week 11 he danced a rumba to "Falling Slowly", from the musical Once, and scored 39, putting him at the top. In the semi-final his Charleston scored 37. In the final, on 19 December 2015, the couple danced a Quickstep to "My Generation" by The Who, scoring 36, a showdance to "Can't Feel My Face" by The Weeknd, scoring 35, and a Pasodoble to "It's My Life" by Bon Jovi, scoring 39. In the public vote the couple were voted the series winners, gaining the Glitterball trophy.[10]

Strictly Come Dancing performances
Week # Dance/Song Judges' scores Total Result
Revel Horwood Bussell Goodman Tonioli
1 Cha-Cha-Cha / "Reach Out, I'll Be There" 5 8 7 7 27 No Elimination
2 Waltz / "See the Day" 7 8 8 8 31 Safe
3 Jive / "Misirlou/You Never Can Tell" 9 9 9 10 37 Safe
4 Quickstep / "My Generation" 5 7 6 7 25 Safe
5 Paso Doble / "It's My Life" 8 9 8 8 33 Safe
6 American Smooth / "Li'l Red Riding Hood" 8 9 8 9 34 Safe
7 Argentine Tango / "Diferente" 8 9 8 9 34 Safe
8 Foxtrot / "Lay Me Down" 6 8 8 8 30 Safe
9 Salsa / "Cuba" 9 9 9 9 36 Safe
10 Tango / "When Doves Cry" 9 10 9 10 38 Safe
Quickstep-athon / "Sing, Sing, Sing" Awarded 3 Extra Points 41
11 Rumba / "Falling Slowly" 9 10 10 10 39 Safe
12 Viennese Waltz / "Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?" 8 9 8 9 34 Safe
Charleston / "Doctor Jazz" 9 9 9 10 37
13 Quickstep / "My Generation" 9 9 9 9 36 Winner
Showdance / "Can't Feel My Face" 8 9 9 9 35
Paso Doble / "It's My Life" 9 10 10 10 39

Personal life

McGuiness is vegetarian, although he has described himself as "not a militant vegetarian by any means".[11] He was named PETA's Sexiest Male Vegetarian Celebrity in 2013.[12] He can play the drums. He discovered The Wanted by Googling 'auditions' and getting two results, one for a circus and one for the band.[13][14]

Filmography
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2013 Chasing the Saturdays Himself Episode: "DeepFriedSats"
The Wanted Life
2015 Strictly Come Dancing Contestant Series 13
2017 Celebrity Hunted Contestant Series 1

Stage
Year Title Role
2016–2017 Big The Musical Josh Baskin

References
  1. "Notts Most Wanted: Jay McGuiness". Archived from the original on 2015-12-24. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
  2. "Screaming girls greet singer who goes back to school". Newark Advertiser. 23 July 2010. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  3. "Jay McGuiness Wanted on the Strictly dance floor". BBC.
  4. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b07xn2vc/pointless-celebrities-series-10-7-strictly
  5. https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/news/rip-it-up-the-60’s-to-transfer-to-the-garrick-theatre
  6. https://www.ripituptheshow.com/home
  7. "Jay McGuiness: Strictly Come Dancing 2015 contestant". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  8. "'Strictly Come Dancing': Aliona Vilani 'Argues With Husband Vincent Kavanagh' After Being Snapped With Partner Jay McGuiness". Huffingtonpost.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-12-05.
  9. "BBC Blogs - Strictly Come Dancing - Halloween Week Leader Board Recap". Bbc.co.uk. 7 November 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  10. "Video: Strictly Come Dancing 2015: moment Jay McGuiness and Aliona Vilani win the show". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. 19 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  11. McGuiness, Jay (25 March 2015). "I'm not a militant vegetarian by any means, but please watch this before your next". Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  12. "The Wanted's Jay McGuiness Named World's Sexiest Male Vegetarian Celebrity".
  13. "BBC One - Strictly Come Dancing - Jay McGuiness". BBC.
  14. "Strictly Come Dancing - Jay McGuinnes - BBC One". Retrieved 2015-12-07.
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