Dancer whose barefoot video went viral meets Camilla

Camilla, the Queen Consort met a young Nigerian ballet dancer who got a scholarship after his video went viral.

A video of Anthony Mmesoma Madu dancing barefoot in the rain in Lagos was viewed online more than 16 million times.

Camilla spoke with the 13-year-old, during a visit to Elmhurst Ballet School in Birmingham.

She wished the second-year student luck with a forthcoming Disney documentary telling his story.

When asked if he had always loved dancing, the young star replied: “Yes, since I was five years old.”

“It gets to grips with you, you can’t let it go – good luck,” Camilla replied.

A documentary about the boy, whose family live on the edge of the Nigerian capital, was announced by Disney last September.

Speaking after the visit, Anthony said he had adapted well to life in the UK, despite finding it “still quite cold”.

“My dancing’s going well, it’s really, really great, and I’m really enjoying it,” he said.

“I just hope that younger dancers from anywhere around the world… I just hope to inspire them to pursue their dreams and never give up,” he added.

The Queen Consort, who is patron of Elmhurst, unveiled a plaque during her visit to mark the school’s centenary, and spoke to other students, staff and alumni.

Later in the day she visited Southwater Library in Telford to thank charity volunteers for their outreach work, including East Shropshire Talking Newspaper and a food bank.

She also unveiled a plaque which will be placed on a veteran’s trail in the nearby Town Park.

Chair Erica Hanson-McKenzie said the trail represented a “forgotten community” of living veterans.

“This plaque means so much to me that when they told me about it, honestly, I could have cried,” she added.

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]