Strictly Come Dancing star Hamza Yassin is instantly recognisable for his long dreadlocks that almost touch the floor, and their incredible length is due to the fact that he hasn't had a haircut in 17 years.

The 32 year old wildlife presenter – who has been smashing his routines on Strictly this year – has revealed the reason why he's never had his hair cut.

Speaking on ITV's This Morning, Hamza said: "I remember, my mum used to sit me down, me, my brother and my dad, and just give us the number two the whole time.

"I just rebelled one year, I'm like, 'I'm done'. And that was it!"

Although he hasn't had a proper chop, Hamza has admitted to trimming his long locks once or twice, purely for practical reasons.

"There's been bits that have [been] trimmed because I was in the Arctic and it dipped in a bit of engine oil so it'll get snipped off every now and then," he said on Good Morning Britain.

"My hair is part of me and Jowita's nice enough to put up with it in training."

Hamza has gotten rave reviews for his dancing skills on Strictly, having remained at the top of the leader board for the past few weeks. He is paired up with Jowita Przystal, and the pair have been impressing the judges with their routines.

Hamza has credited his African heritage for his rhythm, as his family hails from Sudan.

He's told of how his family were supportive of his desire to study Zoology, after he had initially intended to follow his family's footsteps into a medical career.

Speaking to The Herald, Hamza explained: "I planned to follow my family, who are all medics, into the profession.

"I felt pressure to do it, so I decided to be a dentist like my brother. But when I saw his textbooks, and what he had to do, I realised it was going to be super-hard for me. I am dyslexic and it was definitely a factor in my decision – but I also had another dream to follow, which had always been in my head growing up.

"So, I told my family I wanted to do wildlife film-making, switched to zoology and they were 100 per cent behind me."

Hamza is best known for his role as Ranger Hamza on the children's television channel CBeebies, and his work on shows such as Countryfile and Animal Park.

He has a huge passion for Scottish wildlife, and at the age of 21, he packed up and moved there to study wildlife, where he lived in his car.

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