A DANCING ace has thrown her support behind Redbridge Council’s London Borough of Culture bid.

Chizzy Akudolu, actress and star of BBC1’s Strictly Come Dancing, is backing the This Is Redbridge campaign for a £1 million pounds to stage a series of cultural activities.

Shakespeare’s Globe and The Tate are just two of the organisations that have already pledged to partner on projects with the winning borough.

Ms Akudolu, who lives in Redbridge, praised the wide variety of people living in her area and emphasised the centrality of culture to the borough’s identity.

She said: “Redbridge is a wonderful borough, host to a diverse range of people from all walks of life.

“It's an area full of special places for me and everyone else who lives here. Culture is a huge part of Redbridge and becoming London Borough of Culture would help us to continue to tell our stories and show London: This is Redbridge.”

Creatives still have time to contribute what they love about the borough, what they like to do in Redbridge and campaign ideas to help the council’s bid.

The London Borough of Culture contest was launched in June by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

The competition is inspired by UK City and European Capital of Culture programmes.

Click here to submit your ideas.

The deadline is Friday, November 17.