While celebrities might have a pull on the nation's heartstrings, it's the professionals that hold Strictly Come Dancing together as they choreograph routines, make uncoordinated incomers look good, and take home a much smaller pay cheque. But at least an ever-increasing number of them have carved out a secondary career on the road, touring shows that are high on glitz but with the talent to back it up. And, having appeared in the first ever episode back in 2004, Anton Du Beke and Erin Boag are the undisputed prom king and queen of the Strictly professionals.

An onstage couple for 25 years, dating back to their days on the amateur circuit, Du Beke and Boag know how to please an audience. They've been touring the UK with sell-out shows almost every year since 2009, the latest of which is Showtime. A tribute to icons such as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli and more, it finds them backed by an ensemble of dancers, singers and a 23-piece orchestra.

'It's a song and dance show that's purely about entertainment,' says Du Beke, whose comedic responses during the mid-show Q&A are always as tight as the routines. But he and Boag know when to create numbers and when to step back and let choreographer/director Nikki Woollaston do her thing.

'We're very involved in the ballroom numbers, but the rest of the show is down to Nikki,' he says. 'She puts together all the ensemble pieces because you can't do that when you're actually in it. We tried that with the first show and learned pretty quickly that you need to be out front to do that. Anybody who thinks they can do it from onstage, well, they're either better than me at it or they've got three eyes.'

Anton & Erin: Showtime is on tour until Wednesday 30 March.