An Aberdeen man who turned to his passion for pole dancing after losing his job offshore has taken another step towards earning a full-time living from the pursuit.
Theo Robertson had been employed as a fluid analyst specialist with Texan oil giant Schlumberger before losing his job amid the industry downturn earlier this year.
Rather than moping around however, the 27-year-old took his redundancy as a chance to turn his life around and decided to capitalise on his hobby.
He quickly began studying for degrees in contemporary dance and sports therapy, and ultimately hopes to earn enough to get by from his gymnastic endeavours.
Mr Robertson says he now feels closer to achieving that ambition, after his recent success at Scotland’s most high-profile pole dancing competition.
The flexible fitness enthusiast, who maintains a strict diet to help enable him to hoist his frame around the pole with ease and grace, followed a gruelling training regime ahead of the contest.
But the hard work paid off when he triumphed in the male final of the Mr and Mrs Pole Dance tournament in Glasgow’s Classic Grand entertainment venue.
Mr Robertson said: “That is the biggest and longest-running competition of its kind in the country, and it attracts entrants from all over Scotland and England.
“The eventual plan is to make a full-time living from this, after I finish my three-year degree in contemporary dance.
“I want to travel the world teaching workshops, and winning a contest as prestigious as this helps to boost my profile.”
Mr Robertson is now working shifts as long as 12 hours while on a one-month contract as a well site chemist.
But he says he spent “every hour that was left before falling asleep” choreographing the routine that led to his win in Glasgow.
Mr Robertson is the director of the Inverted pole dancing and circus arts studio in Aberdeen.
He admitted that for years he “dismissed” pole dancing as being for women.
However, he ended up “absolutely loving it” after discovering how much strength, concentration, flexibility and dedication the gymnastic side of the pursuit required.
Mr Robertson said that -despite a lower income – he is now enjoying a “better quality of life”.
He added: “As a professional pole dance instructor, I won’t be earning nearly as much money.
“But it would be far less stress, and I would rather do something I enjoy for less pay than going to a job that I hate for more money.”
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