Francesca Hayward

Francesca Hayward joined the Royal Ballet in London at the age of eighteen and since 2016 she has been a Principal dancer. She talks to Akram about her grandmother buying her a ballet video when she was three, how the stories she saw enveloped her, and how the drama of dance became her all-consuming passion.

She says ''as a small person'' she likes to surprise people by using the stage to the max – her big jumps ''eating up the space'' and feeling like flying. And how although she doesn’t enjoy swimming on the surface of water, underwater she feels at home, ''like a fish.''

Francesca opens up to Akram about how she gets her body and mind into gear as she prepares to be confident and calm for a performance.