WE all love to see a good "journey" on a reality TV series ...

and Strictly Come Dancing has produced some of the most memorable of those.

Who could forget when cricketer Darren Gough discovered his twinkle toes, when Alesha Dixon finally mastered the elegance of ballroom, or when Olympic gymnast Lewis Smith learned the importance of a little razzle dazzle in his routines?

But no-one in the 10 series of the BBC dance contest has enjoyed the same epic odyssey of ex-Emmerdale star Lisa Riley, whose dancefloor dreams are still going strong months after the glitter settled on the live show and arena tour.

The actress and TV presenter isn't just starring in Strictly Confidential – the glitzy live extravaganza written and directed by caustic judge Craig Revel Horwood and headed for Glasgow next weekend – she IS the show.

The behind-the-scenes look at the Strictly phenomenon, which also stars pros Natalie Lowe, Ian Waite and Artem Chigvintsev, uses her life story and background as its jumping off point.

"To think it's been a year since Strictly, and what has happened to my life has been absolutely insane, but just fantastic," said Lisa, who recently celebrated her 37th birthday with a party in Manchester.

"I'm so lucky. I'm loving every single second of it. Each day just gets better and better. As a cast we're constantly on cloud nine."

The bubbly TV star became the people's champion of last year's sequin-encrusted extravaganza.

As the star, from Bury, Lancashire, shed nearly three stones and four dress sizes, her odds of winning were slashed by the bookies from 88/1 to 6/1.

Having slid into the splits at Wembley Arena in front of thousands of cheering fans and more than 12 million viewers at home, she earned a well-deserved place in the semi-final with dance partner Robin Windsor, eventually losing out in a dance-off to Denise Van Outen.

What viewers didn't know at the time was that Lisa had lost her mum, Cath, to breast cancer at the age of 57 only a few weeks before rehearsals began.

Any mention of her bereavement was a no-go area either during rehearsal room footage or on the It Takes Two sofa with Zoe Ball.

"I didn't want it, nor would I want people to pick up the phone and vote for me because my mother had passed away," said Lisa.

"My mum was my best friend, she was my confidante in life, she was my world. I believe that my mum has created all what has happened since."

A year on from her loss, the death of her mother does feature poignantly in Strictly Confidential.

A band plays Cath's favourite song, In My Daughter's Eyes by Martina McBride, after Lisa shares an insight with audiences into coping with the grief.

The emotion continues to be raw, especially after losing her good friend, Bernie Nolan, to cancer recently.

"It hits me differently every night," admits Lisa, who won Most Popular Newcomer at the National Television Awards in 1996 for her portrayal of Mandy Dingle.

"The lyrics have a real emotional connection with me."

IN a similar mode to the TV show, Strictly Confidential runs the gamut of dance styles, from a ballet inspired by Emmerdale to Lisa glamming up for Chicago's All That Jazz and transforming into Edna Turnblad from Hairspray, plus reliving her foxtrot and cha-cha from the live shows.

The actress, who had ballet lessons from the age of four and trained in pole dancing in 2009 for a play called The Naked Truth, found it tough being surrounded by professionals during rehearsals for the two-month-long UK tour.

"When we were in the practice room, I was the only celeb," she says. "Keeping up with the professionals was hard, but I was very proud of myself.

"I made a point that I really wanted to nail it. I'm desperately proud of that."

Her leading man in Strictly Confidential is Russian-born pin-up Artem Chigvintsev, who lifted the glitterball with EastEnders actress Kara Tointon in his debut year.

But it was her TV dance partner Robin Windsor who made Lisa fall back in love with dance ... in a rehearsal room in Glasgow.

The pair spent three weeks of rehearsals here while Lisa filmed her death scenes in BBC1 drama Waterloo Road, in which she played Tina Allen, the light-fingered mother of Scout and Liam.

"It was really hard, but Robin was amazing," said Lisa."When we had learned all the dance routines, then I would say could you run through my scenes with me?

"And he would do all my dialogue with me, so that was a great help."

The actress will reappear on the small screen in the autumn in the new series of Inspector George Gently, but she's staying tight-lipped about her own show for ITV, which she will begin after the Strictly Confidential tour ends.

Come September, she'll be glued to the screen as two more unsuspecting female celebrities are put through they paces by her two leading men.

"I always said I wanted Robin to get Nigella Lawson," said Lisa. "For Artem, I'd like him to get a pop star this year, maybe one of the Spice Girls.

"I'd love Artem to get Geri Halliwell. That would be a really great pairing."

n Strictly Confidential is at the Clyde Auditorium on Sunday at 3pm. Tickets priced £20-£42.50 from 0844 395 4000.