Tango dancer. Writer. Artist. Adventurer.
Sally Blake is a British writer on a mission to inspire others to live their dreams.
Born in Shrewsbury in 1963, she lived the life she thought she ought to have, until the grand age of 43 when unexpected events (divorcio!) led to her first ever solo adventure, to Mongolia. There, in a slightly seedy bar in Ulaan Baatar, she heard the words ‘Argentine tango’ and so, got the chance to discover the life she really wanted. She’s been dancing in Buenos Aires ever since.
In June 2010 Sallycat published her useful and entertaining guide book for tango dancers, Happy Tango: Sallycat’s Guide to Dancing in Buenos Aires. She reckons it’s a great read for anyone passionate about tango and hopes it will help YOU to live your tango dreams. She’s thrilled that the success of the book led to a second edition, published 30 November 2012 and now available in paperback and Kindle versions.
Listen to Sally
on BBC Radio 4: Excess Baggage
29th October 2011
Click here to listen to the author of Happy Tango: Sallycat’s Guide to Dancing in Buenos Aires Sally Blake speaking about her experiences of tango in Buenos Aires on the BBC Radio 4 programme Excess Baggage presented by John McCarthy. The programme was broadcast live from London on Saturday 29th October 2011, with Sally half-way-round-the-world-away in the Buenos Aires BBC studio. Sally and the tango item are in the second half of the broadcast, but the first part is fascinating too, an interview with transoceanic rower Roz Savage. Sally would like to thank Travellers Worldwide with whom Sally first travelled to Argentina, and BBC Producer Harry Parker for this BBC Radio 4 opportunity.
See Sally dance with her first Buenos Aires tango teacher Ariel Yanovsky in this 2008 film made by British film maker Catrin Strong. See Sally dance with Carlos at her Mum and Dad’s Golden Wedding Anniversary in 2009, here. Remember that Sally only began dancing tango in late 2006, so she is still a beginner in both of these videos, and kind of always will be.
When Sally first travelled to Buenos Aires in 2007 she wrote a popular blog called ‘Sallycat’s Adventures’.
Sally is a painter. You can see some of her paintings at sallytownsendblake.com.