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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Frances Kindon

Strictly: Ellie Taylor's horror birth as baby 'was like a grenade lifted from body'

Comedian Ellie Taylor divided the Strictly Come Dancing judges with her Paso Doble last weekend, despite the performance being a hit with the crowd.

And her three-year-old daughter is one of her harshest critics, voicing her disappointment when Ellie, 38, and her professional partner Johannes Radebe didn't round off their week one dance with a kiss.

Appearing on Strictly, It Takes Two, host Rylan said: "I heard there was someone who wasn't impressed with the dance though. Your daughter, she wasn't impressed with the Quickstep. Why, what did she want at the end?"

Laughing, Ellie explained: "Oh, she was sad that we didn't kiss... we'll save that for a dance off!"

The judges gave Ellie's week two dance mixed reviews (BBC)

Ellie welcomed her baby girl in November 2018 but suffered a slew of problems after the birth left her in agony and unable to walk.

After undergoing a c-section, the star revealed that the trauma plunged her to the 'fringes' of post-natal depression.

"When my daughter was born it was like a grenade was lifted out of my body and my optimism was turned upside down and inside out," she told You magazine.

"You're dealing with this physical trauma and a newborn and my mind sort of collapsed. It was just the most intense experience I've ever been through.

Ellie welcomed her daughter in November 2018 (elliejanetaylor/Instagram)

"The house felt really dark and lifeless and it was a while before the sun came out again. I loved my daughter but I thought, 'We’ve made a terrible mistake.' I didn't understand how I could be the person I was before.

And while she loves her daughter fiercely, for Ellie, those first few months were some of the darkest she's had to endure.

"There were days where I thought I had lost myself forever," she told Sustain Health.

"It felt like my life was haunted. The scariest place I’ve ever known was my bedroom at night when it was just me and the baby, when you feel like you're the only person awake in the whole wide world."

Ellie is besotted with her daughter, but the early days weren't easy (elliejanetaylor/Instagram)
Ellie's mental health took a beating after the difficult birth (elliejanetaylor/Instagram)

She and husband Phil Black enjoy a fun-filled life with their little one in Hackney, East London.

Phil is one of CNN's top journalists and has covered some of the biggest stories of our time, from the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004 to the search for Madeline McCann and the Princess Diana inquest.

He started out as a researcher on Australia's Channel Nine Gateway programme, working his way up to a producer and a reporter before becoming a correspondent for Seven News.

Ellie Taylor's husband Phil Black (CNN)

He joined CNN International in 2007 and previously served as the Russia correspondent before being redeployed to London.

The Macleay College graduate reported live from the crash site of the downed MH17 plane and has been at the front of the action during the Russian conflict with Ukraine.

But despite his high profile and the serious nature of his work, he and Ellie enjoy a laughter-filled marriage, with the comedian admitting her funniest trick is to stick her finger in his mouth while he's yawning.

*Strictly Come Dancing continues tonight at 6.30pm.

What do you think of the Strictly couples this year? Have your say in the comments section below...

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