EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW AND PHOTOS
DANCING FOR JOY AS TWO BECOME THREE
INTRODUCE BABY DAUGHTER HAVANA — THEIR VERY OWN TINY DANCER
Cuba is known the world over as a cultural capital of dance and the birthplace of styles from salsa to cha cha cha. So it seems fitting that when Strictly Come Dancing professional Neil Jones welcomed his newborn daughter, he was inspired to name her after the country’s vibrant capital – Havana.
“Cuba is the home of dance and very multicultural, so it was perfect – it sums us up,” says former British, European and world champion Neil, 41, who is dancing on air as he and fiancée Chyna Mills open the doors to their Leeds home to introduce little Havana Jones, exclusively in hello!.
“We’re running on not much sleep and pure joy,” he adds, delighted to be sharing this special moment with us after the couple announced their surprise engagement and pregnancy in our pages in April, before revealing a few months later that they were expecting a girl.
Their bundle of joy, who was born at 1.04pm on Monday 2 October, weighing 8lb 7oz, is already showing signs of following in her dad’s perfectly choreographed footsteps.
“She has dancer’s feet,” Neil tells us, brimming with pride. “And she loves music,” adds model and content creator Chyna, 24, who found fame on Love Island last year. “We’ve been watching Neil on Strictly from home. I told her: ‘Look, it’s Daddy on the screen,’ and at that moment she did these little smiles with her eyes closed.”
Throughout Chyna’s pregnancy, the couple found it hard to settle on a name they both liked, until one day, Neil came up with Havana.
PERFECT FIT
“I thought: ‘Chyna’s probably going to say no, but I’m just going to say it anyway,’” he recalls. “She loved it – Iwas quite shocked!”
The new parents, who met at a party after Chyna caught Neil’s eye during her time on Love Island, decided against choosing a middle name for their baby girl. “It’s hard enough coming up with a first name,” Chyna says with a laugh, while Neil adds: “One of my friends said: ‘Oh, this is brilliant, you can call her Indiana.’ I was like: ‘I am not calling my daughter Indiana Jones!’”
