Dancing Strictly contestant John Goodwin speaks to JLife’s Katherine Howard about mastering dance moves, fundraising feats and major influences.

When asked who his dream dancing partner would be, John Goodwin answered ‘Hattie Jacques’. John’s always up for a laugh and a challenge. This is one of the reasons why he’s embarking on one of the most potentially embarrassing moments of his life – he’s taking part in community fundraiser Dancing Strictly, a North Leeds version of BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, which is taking place this month. “The whole concept of never having danced before and appearing in front of 500 people in a spandex type of outfit, I mean, there’s no point in doing it if you can’t see the funny side!” laughs John. John is no stranger to going to extreme lengths for good causes. He has raised money for various children’s charities by running the New York Marathon and various half marathons, and hitting the dance floor is no less challenging: “I’m training two nights a week and on Sundays, all for a 90 second routine. It doesn’t sound much but, believe me, it’s a lot of moves!”

John’s career path has had almost as many twists and turns as his dance routine. Before going to university he went to Israel and lived on a kibbutz for a year: “I arrived just after the Yom Kippur War so it was historically an interesting time to be there. It was a great experience. I would spend half the day learning Hebrew and the other half doing various jobs, from bricklaying to fruit picking.” On returning to the UK, he went to Lancaster University to study English Literature and Linguistics. He graduated in 1977 and was given a place to do an MA in American Literature, which was due to start the following year. He had considered becoming a university lecturer; his mother was Head of Brodetsky Primary School and his father was also a teacher: “Because I had a year to wait I returned to Leeds. I decided to use my time well by getting a law qualification and I did year-long law course. I’ve stayed in Leeds ever since.” It was a significant turning point and he set his sights on becoming a solicitor. One of the major influences on his career was working with local lawyer Victor Zermansky: “I did my law training at his firm and he was way ahead of his time. He took a lot of time and trouble in making sure you learned how to do the job properly. He was by no means an easy taskmaster but I’m grateful for the time he spent training me.”

Today, John is a partner at law firm Cohen Cramer where he specialises in fraud, regulatory and motoring matters, and he is also the director of a sports management company. He hasn’t left his teaching aspirations behind; he’s also a visiting lecturer at Leeds Metropolitan University on topics relating to law.

John is also Chair of the Leeds Jewish Learning Institute, a Lubavtich learning initiative which runs courses throughout the world. “Sometimes people can be put off by religious learning but Rabbi Pink presents the courses in such a user-friendly way. We’ve recently been studying historical figures, people such as Hillel, Maimonides and Rabbi Akiva; deeply principled individuals who fought for what they believed in, that’s what I aspire to be,” he says.

An altogether different challenge awaits; John is currently training for a paratrooper fitness challenge where he will be tasked with running 18 miles in less than five hours over mixed terrain while wearing full army kit: “I’m hoping I get around the course without collapsing in a big heap at the end!”

Another string to John’s bow is his music skills. He’s a keen piano and harmonica player and likes to belt out a tune or two. “I can’t say I watched Strictly Dancing because it clashed with X Factor,” admits John. “I have been known to sing, even when sober. It goes down better if the audience has had a few drinks though! So, if there is an X Factor style competition next year I wouldn’t mind having a go at that too!”