So finally I can tell everyone about E4 coming to Cleve Chiropractic last year to film us working in the clinic!
I have been treating the Dark Angels, the amazing hip-hop dance sensational group, for around eight years – they’re the current British and World champion group from South Bristol.
The group is run by my patient and friend Charlie Bedford and his wife Steph. I met Charlie when he was still dancing but was struggling with huge back issues that he thought would end his dancing career.
Needless to say we got him back on his feet to compete at the annual World hip-hop championships one more time before he retired to concentrate on coaching his team. Charlie asked me to go to Florida to help treat the whole squad that year and, never one to turn down a trip to go to the sunshine state, I jumped at the chance.
It was great fun and, although the team didn\’t win that year, they did really well. Ever since then, I have helped to look after all the dancers at the Dark Angel Academy.
In 2020, they made it to the finals of the BBC\’s Greatest Dancer with Oti Mabuse as their captain. Subsequently, E4 contacted the group to follow their journey post-Covid to the British Hip-hop finals.
The show started with a surprisingly gritty first episode following individual members of the group and how their personal lives interact with dancing. Viewers also see how much support they get from the community in Knowle West.
Cleve Chiro was featured in Episode 2. Inevitably one of the dancers, Ruby, hurts her knee and decides it’s time to see me for some rehab. The film crew follow Ruby’s journey as she worries that she will be unable to make the competition that is only a few weeks.
Ruby, who is one of the main dancers, presents at the clinic with the full TV crew in tow – on a boiling hot day when we’re still wearing full PPE. I remember my glasses kept steaming up so I took them off and spent most of the time slightly squinting.
Ruby had two problems, with pain behind the kneecap and a pinched meniscus. The TV show doesn\’t show it well as it reduces the drama, but we pretty much fix it there and then with a couple of top sports injury manipulations that work fast for these things. I saw her a couple more times to make sure but she makes it through to the finals simply enough – which was as much a relief for me as it was for her!
The whole series is a wonderful example of how great Bristol is and what a superb culture we have here, as well as highlighting the Dark Angels as the UK\’s top hip-hop dance academy. I thoroughly recommend catching up with it if you haven’t already. Just use the All 4 app and search ‘Dark Angels’. A fabulous experience.
Catherine, Lucy and I from the clinic will be working at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham this July and August. I will tell you all about it next time!
