‘Biggest nonsense’ Fred Astaire slaps down probe into ‘ridiculous’ Ginger Rogers feud

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers are one of the most iconic duos in Hollywood history and starred in several films together including Top Hat, Swing Time, Shall We Dance and Flying Down to Rio. While the pair were electric on screen, they were plagued with rumours of an intense feud with one another. However, in an episode of Talking Pictures, Fred could be seen dismissing rumours of fights with Ginger, instead paying tribute to the screen icon.

Talking Pictures narrator Celia Imrie explained: “When they danced together in perfect harmony it created something truly magical on screen.

“Off screen, the rumour was they weren’t as close as fans assumed, something interviewers were always keen to explore.”

An interview between Fred and Michael Parkinson in 1976 was then shown with the Hollywood actor keen to clear up any speculation.

Fred stated: “Ginger was certainly the most effective partner I had, everybody knows.

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“I’d say, ‘Please, do that again,’ and then she was just the same way, she could hardly wait for me to kick her in the ankle.

“No actually, seriously, we never had a fight. Never!

“There were questionable conversations about material and say ‘I don’t like it,’ ‘Oh but I like it,’ ‘I think we shouldn’t,’ but you don’t fight.

“I can’t fight with the people I work with. I just couldn’t do it. It didn’t happen but the press liked it that way so we laughed about it.”