Meet the people behind @theldnfamily
While you may be familiar with Holly and James as part of viral dance sensations @theldnfamily, the talented duo were in the spotlight long before taking over the small screen.
They first met when they were sixteen. Since then, the now-engaged couple have danced all over the world, performing alongside global superstars. James is also a choreographer and has worked with the likes of Janet Jackson, Katy Perry, and Taylor Swift, as well as on TV shows such as the X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent.
They also hit screens as part of pop band MITSOTU (Music Is The Soul Of The Universe) when they auditioned for the X Factor in 2012, securing four “yes” votes from the judges to reach the bootcamp stage. Shortly after their time on the show, they opened the MPA Academy and Agency, a dance school and talent agency based in Petts Wood.
Going viral
They started filming family dance routines with their two daughters during the COVID-19 lockdown, but it wasn’t until around 18 months ago that they began to properly focus on creating content for their @theldnfamily channels.
“We just started filming for fun as we all love to dance, but after we had a few viral videos during lockdown, we started being approached by brands that wanted to work with us,” explains Holly.
“When we started, we were filming anywhere and everywhere, but one day we realised how great the lighting was in our front garden and now it’s the place we tend to film when we’re at home. We often get people coming up to us saying ‘you’re the doorstep dancers!’ – that seems to be what people remember most.”
A new background for the ‘doorstep dancers’
In their past videos, a black door with vertical panels has provided the backdrop but in their more recent posts you may have noticed a slight change…
Holly and James have lived in their current home in Kent since August 2019. They’d begun to experience problems with their front door and after seeing her cousin’s new composite door, Holly knew it was time to find a replacement.
“When I saw the composite door, I liked everything about it; the way it looked, the way it shut completely into the frame, and how secure it felt. I realised it was everything that our then front door wasn’t,” says Holly.
This, paired with a chance encounter with old school friend Joe Forde, led Holly to look at new front doors. Joe is now the owner of Afforde Doors and offered to help Holly find the perfect door for her home.
“This is the first time we’ve bought a front door so it was handy to have Afforde Doors to support us through the process. They listened to what we wanted and helped us find a design that worked with our home and décor,” adds Holly.
Modern, minimalist design
“For us the priority was having a secure door that kept the cold out and looked good at the same time. We wanted something ultra-modern that would go with our predominantly black and white décor, so Afforde Doors showed us Solidor’s Italia range and we chose the Palermo in Black,” says Holly.
To complement the central horizontal panel design of the Palermo, they added a full length pull handle in chrome. They also added a full-length glazed panel to one side of the door to allow natural light into the hallway.
They also opted for a black letter plate from Solidor’s Sweet range so that it blended with the overall door colour which allowed them to achieve the modern, minimalist design they were looking for.
Working with Afforde Doors
Afforde Doors is a family-run business based in Carshalton, Surrey. Their installation team fit the new door in December 2023 and even had help from a special visitor…
“We also had a visit from Santa on the day of the installation, so as they were working away Father Christmas appeared to spread some festive cheer!
“The Afforde team were great from start to finish. Once they’d fitted the new door, they tidied everything away and explained how the new door worked before they left. They have a great reputation anyway, but after working with them we’d recommend them to anyone.”
@theldnfamily has shared a video about the installation on their Instagram, watch it here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C4yhaB4q79W/
