Ashley Banjo
| Ashley Banjo | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ashley Modurotolu Banjo[1] 4 October 1988 Leytonstone, London, England |
| Occupation | Dancer, television presenter, actor |
| Known for | Diversity |
Ashley Modurotolu Banjo (born 4 October 1988) is an English street dancer, choreographer and actor. He is leader of dance troupe Diversity, who won the third series of Britain's Got Talent. Banjo is also currently a judge on the Sky 1 show Got to Dance.
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Personal life [edit]
He was born in Leytonstone, London, to a Nigerian father, Funso Banjo, a professional boxer, and an English mother, Danielle, a former Ballet dancer, who now helps with Diversity's management and also runs Danceworks Studios. He went to St Johns School in Billericay.[2] At the time of Diversity's Britain's Got Talent win, Banjo was studying physics and biology at Queen Mary, University of London having previously attended SEEVIC College.[2] Banjo has been in a six-year relationship with Francesca Abbott, who is a member of another dance troupe called Out of the Shadows. He says that education comes first for him and he wants to be a scientist.[2]
Ashley Banjo is an Official Ambassador of the United Dance Organisation.[3]
Diversity [edit]
In 2007, Ashley and his younger brother Jordan formed Swift Moves with nine of their friends, before later changing their name to Diversity. He was given the nickname 'Chosen' by his fellow Diversity members. In their first year together, they won the Street Dance Weekend 2007 competition before deciding to enter Britain's Got Talent.
Britain's Got Talent [edit]
In 2009, Diversity won the third series of Britain's Got Talent. All the judges heavily praised their performances throughout the competition, with Ashley's choreography being described by Amanda Holden as "genius". In the final referring to their winning performance, judge Simon Cowell said "If I was going to give marks on that, that is the only performance tonight I would give a 10 to."
After receiving "yes" votes from all three judges in their audition, Diversity went on to compete in the first semi-final on 24 May, losing the public vote-decided first place to Susan Boyle but winning the judges' vote against Natalie Okri. In the final six days later, Diversity were announced as the winners, beating Boyle and Julian Smith (who came second and third respectively).[4][5]
As winners of the competition, Diversity received £100,000 (around £9,900 per member) and went on to perform before Queen Elizabeth at the Royal Variety Show on 7 December 2009.[6] Subsequently, Diversity were nominated in the Dance section of the final South Bank Show awards and won an award at the Pride of Britain Awards[7] On the latest tour he pulled a ligament in his leg which made him unable to perform on the last two shows of Diversity's Christmas tour. In 2012 Diversity did their first arena tour called digitized: Trapped in a game. Ashley Banjo Choreographed, Produced and Directed the tour. Diversity sold out the O2 arena with a standing ovation.
Got To Dance [edit]
Ashley became a judge on Sky 1's dance show Got to Dance in 2010. The show is currently in its 4th series. Diversity appear as guest performers in the finals every year.
Filmography [edit]
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Britain's Got Talent | Himself |
| 2010 | StreetDance 3D | Aaron |
| 2010–present | Got to Dance | Himself as a judge |
| 2011 | The Real Hustle | Himself |
| The Magicians | Himself | |
| The Apprentice | Himself | |
| Text Santa | Himself | |
| 2012 | Ashley Banjo’s Secret Street Crew | Himself |
| Celebrity Juice | Himself | |
| The Cube | Himself | |
| 2013 | Stella | Himself, episode 2.7 |
References [edit]
- ^ "Search 1837 to 2006 – Birth, Marriage and Death indexes". FindMyPast.com. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
- ^ a b c Claudia Connell (2009-06-01). "Fame? I want to be a scientist! Diversity's lead dancer insists his exams come first". Dailymail.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
- ^ http://www.udostreetdance.com/weareudo/ambassadors
- ^ Smith, Lizzie (31 May 2009). "Dance group Diversity in shock victory over Susan Boyle in Britain's Got Talent final". Daily Mail (Associated Newspapers Ltd). Retrieved 5 June 2009.
- ^ Leach, Ben (30 May 2009). "Diversity beat Susan Boyle to win Britain's Got Talent". The Daily Telegraph (London: Telegraph Media Group). Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
- ^ "International Business Times". International Business Times. 30 May 2009. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2009.
- ^ "Diversity nominated in Arts award". BBC News. 7 January 2010. Archived from the original on 14 January 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
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