Call On Dee

If you've ever wondered who the aerobics instructor in Eric Prydz's "Call On Me" film clip actually was - and whether you can take her class here in Bondi - here's the short answer. Her name is Deanne Berry, she's a Sydney-born professional dancer, and after that leotard-and-legwarmers routine made her one of the most recognised faces on British TV, she came home to Australia and has taught high-energy dance-fitness right here on the beach. I went looking for her story, because a local link to one of the 2000s' most talked-about music videos is far too good to keep quiet.

The video

"Call On Me" by Eric Prydz, released 2004

The instructor

Deanne Berry, a Sydney-born dancer

Bondi link

Has taught dance-fitness classes in the Bondi area

Best for

Anyone who loves moving to music - no dance experience needed

Booking

Check her current classes via her own website and social channels

The most talked-about aerobics video of the 2000s

You almost certainly remember it: a room full of dancers in high-cut leotards, legwarmers and sweatbands, working through a suggestive aerobics routine to Eric Prydz's thumping club track. Released in 2004 on Ministry of Sound, and built around a sampled vocal from Steve Winwood's "Valerie", the song became a UK number-one hit and the video one of the most recognised - and most debated - dance clips of the decade. At the time it was about as risqué as a mainstream music video got. And the instructor front and centre? A Bondi local in the making.

Who is Deanne Berry?

As Deanne tells it, her career began in Sydney at 16, dancing and performing before touring interstate and through Asia with musicals and artists. That work eventually took her to the UK, where a tour backing Sir Cliff Richard led to a stint in London - and, during a break between concert dates, to a casting call for an eighties-inspired Ministry of Sound video. She landed the role of the instructor, and a few days later found herself in that now-infamous black thong leotard, legwarmers and not much else.

She didn't expect it to go anywhere. "I thought not too many people would see it," she told me - so jumping around and pelvic-thrusting felt harmless enough. Then the track shot to the top of the charts, the video spread around the world, and almost overnight she went from working dancer to accidental fitness guru. She took the moment and ran with it: enrolling in fitness courses, choreographing and presenting a Ministry of Sound fitness DVD that sold strongly, and later waking up Britain as a fitness presenter on breakfast television.

The Bondi dance-fitness class

Back in Australia, Deanne has channelled all of that into a dance-conditioning class - each workout themed to a different pop artist, so you sweat your way through the sounds of the likes of Rihanna, Kylie, Beyoncé and Michael Jackson while building stamina, flexibility and strength. Her pitch is simple: leave your inhibitions at the door, come with an open mind, and don't worry if you can't dance. She's had mums and daughters in the same session; the only real requirement is a love of moving to music.

It's a lovely little piece of Bondi trivia: the face of one of the era's most famous music videos quietly getting people dancing a few streets back from the sand. If the story's tempted you to try a class, do check what she's running before you go - and either way, next time that Eric Prydz track comes on, you'll know the instructor is one of our own.