Strictly Come Dancing star Anton Du Beke surprised visitors when he made an appearance at an animal sanctuary's vegan cafe.

Sevenoaks-born Du Beke brought the crew of ITV's This Morning to The Retreat animal rescue farm sanctuary and cafe in High Halden, near Tenterden to do a spot of baking at the vegan eatery.

The 52-year-old ballroom dancer, who is believed to be in the line up to replace judge Darcey Bussell in the hit BBC One show, was helping Bexley-based vegan athlete Carrie Hague to bake vegan biscuits.

It is part of a new slot on This Morning, Anton Du Bake, where the celebrity acts as troubleshooter to the country's failed cooks.

Anton hosted This Morning on Friday, alongside The Saturdays' Rochelle Humes, when regulars Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby took a half-term break.

The Retreat cares for up to 1,000 animals at any one time and has a wildlife hospital dealing with animal emergencies, as well as a large equine re-homing centre.

It has seen a surge in animal adoptions after opening the cafe four years ago, as vegan celebrities including actor Peter Egan and A Place in the Sun presenter Jasmine Harman, have visited and praised The Retreat on social media.

Anton helped his student vegan cook Carrie to produce iced biscuits decorated with pig and chicken images.

The footage is due to be shown on ITV's This Morning next Thursday.

Escaped animals, unusual finds and news from the RSPCA can all be found here .

Read more: All the latest news from Tenterden