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Brendan Cole is a New Zealand ballroom dancer, famous for appearing on BBC TV’s Strictly Come Dancing from 2004 to 2017.

He won the show’s first series with his celebrity partner, newscaster Natasha Kaplinsky.

In October, the 50-year-old will embark on a 30-date tour of the UK called The Legends in Vegas: After Hours, along with four other professionals: Vincent Simone, Ian Waite, Pasha Kovalev and James Jordan.

Brendan and ex-model wife Zoe, live in Oxfordshire with their two children – Aurelia, 13, and Dante, eight.

Couple goals: Brendan Cole and his wife, Zoe

What did your parents teach you about money?

Not enough. And yet my father was a successful businessman; he owned a number of restaurants in Christchurch, New Zealand. When I eventually started earning, I had no idea about how I should handle money and knew nothing at all about mortgages or investments.

What did you do for your first job?

I left school at 16 and became a roofer and then an unskilled labourer. I danced throughout my childhood and then, aged 18, I took part in the World Championships in Ukraine.

On my journey there, I stopped in England to practise ahead of the event. When I walked into the Simply Ballroom dance school in south London, I knew instantly this would be my future. After the competition in Ukraine, I decided to make the UK my new home.

Did you earn any money from dancing at this stage?

No, I had to get jobs as a cleaner in the Hard Rock Cafe, a builder in Croydon and working for a luggage brand. I’d work by day to subsidise my efforts to become a pro dancer.

What happened when you joined Strictly in 2004?

It completely changed my world and, of course, my profile – although I took a big pay cut from what I had been earning on the circuit as a dancer.

My romantic and professional partner at the time, Camilla Dallerup, and I were on about £120,000 a year between us.

Initially on Strictly, I was paid a flat fee of £11,000. The rest of my earnings were made from other work. In time, the celebrities, but not the professionals, started getting more money the further they progressed in the competition.

With this in mind, in 2011, I made it my life’s work to ensure Lulu, the singer, didn’t get to Blackpool, which was usually halfway through the series, and qualify for a raised fee. We did not hit it off, to say the very least.

Did your money improve as the years rolled on?

In time, it went from £11,000 to £14,000, then £17,000 and rose again to £21,000 over the course of a few years.

It then jumped to £25,000, followed by £35,000 and then £40,000. By the time I left in 2017, I was being paid £51,000.

What annoyed me was that any new professionals who joined at that stage got the same money as me.

Have you ever been paid silly money?

Yes, when I did Love Island in 2006. I was paid between £30,000 and £40,000 to be on the show, substantially more than the £14,000 I was getting for Strictly.

Which proved to be the best year of your financial life?

Immediately after leaving Strictly in 2017. The show took up six months of each year if you include the UK tour.

After that, I was free to tour in my own shows and sometimes I earned a five-figure, occasionally a six-figure, sum.

And the worst financial year of your life?

When the Government decimated the live entertainment industry during Covid. I didn’t do a single day’s work for a year and a half.

I hadn’t put any money aside because I’d had no way of knowing my professional life would come to an abrupt halt. I had a wife, two children at private school and three mortgages, including my flat in west London, a house in Buckinghamshire and a property in Majorca. It was tough.

What’s the most expensive thing you’ve bought for fun?

Flash cars – I bought a couple of Teslas when they first came out – but I wouldn’t advise it. They quickly depreciate in value.

Yet I don’t regret two Tom Ford suits costing around £5,000 each. They make me feel and look great – and that’s good for business.

Big night out: Brendan Cole is going on tour in the UK later this year

What do you regard as your biggest financial mistake?

My children. No, I’m joking although they are very expensive. I bought four properties off-plan in Manchester and Liverpool as part of a deal that cost me £50,000 for no real return.

What’s been your best money decision?

In 2008, I bought a flat in Parsons Green, west London, at the height of the depression and I was petrified I’d done the wrong thing.

But I sold it seven years later at a profit of £290,000. The only property I own is a house in Majorca. I had to sell my UK properties when my career stalled so I could continue to pay for the Majorcan house. We rent in the UK.

Will you pass money on to your children – or spend it?

I would like to set my children up the best I can and give them advice on making wise financial decisions. I wouldn’t expect them to come to Daddy for hand-outs when they’re 40 or 50.

Have you put money aside for a pension?

I have, the worst thing I’ve ever done. The money was sitting there but I couldn’t get my hands on it in my time of need.

What would you do if you were made Chancellor?

I’d remove all tax for anyone earning £50,000 or less. If people had that money, they’d spend it and businesses would prosper. And I’d remove VAT on school fees.

What’s your number one financial priority?

My children’s schools. I want them to have the best education possible. I’m prepared to work my backside off to ensure it.

Tickets for the UK tour – The Legends in Vegas: After Hours – are on sale now, available from the venues, Ticketmaster and via legendsofthedancefloor.com.