DYNAMIC dancer Jacob O’Connell performed to his biggest audience to date when he made it to the final of a dance competition broadcast on national TV.

The 17-year-old from Covingham went toe-to-toe against five other finalists in the first BBC Young Dancer of the Year competition’s grand final at London performing arts venue Sadler’s Wells on Saturday.

The awards, presented by Zoe Ball and shown on BBC 2, aimed to showcase the best in young dance talent.

Former Youth Dance Academy member at Swindon Dance Jacob had previously triumphed in the contemporary final in the BBC Young Dancer competition.

On the night the ex-Dorcan Academy pupil competed against the category winners in ballet, hip-hop, and South Asian dance styles along with two wildcard entries. He was denied the trophy by Northumberland student and wildcard Connor Scott.

The grand finalists got a taste of the A-list experience, working with new leading choreographer Patricia Okenwa to create a new piece.

Speaking before the event, Jacob said: “BBC Young Dancer means a lot to me and I am ecstatic about winning a place in the grand final.

"Winning would be a big accomplishment but I'll be happy as long as I'm satisfied with my performance and I'm proud of the work that I’ve done.”

His achievement marks a successful year for Swindon Dance students with 19-year-old alumni Jodelle Douglas also making it through to the finals of the hip hop category but failing to get through to the grand final.

The competition is part of the BBC Get Creative initiative – a year-long celebration of creativity.

Swindon Dance is one of the UK’s National Centres for Advanced Training in Dance and aims to inspire and train young dancers, choreographers and dance practitioners who show exceptional potential in the field, and enable them to follow their dreams - no matter what the circumstances.

For information about Swindon Dance visit swindondance.org.uk.

For more on Get Creative visit bbc.co.uk/getcreative.