Strictly Come Dancing has returned to our screens in 2024 – for a special 20th anniversary of the BBC’s competitive dance show.
This year’s line-up includes Love Islander Tasha Ghouri, EastEnders star Jamie Borthwick, comedian Chris McCausland, and TV presenter Nick Knowles.
While the dancing is of course the main attraction, often what is occurring behind the scenes has also spiked viewers’ interest.
Over the past 21 series that Strictly has aired, speculation has swirled regarding potential blossoming romances between celebrity contestants and professional dancers – a phenomenon known as the ‘Strictly curse’.
While some of the show’s rumours have been nothing but talk, others have been grounded in truth, with several couples who met on Strictly remaining together to this day.
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As this year’s contestants lace up their dancing shoes, just who has the curse affected in the past?
What is the ‘Strictly curse’?
The Strictly curse doesn’t simply refer to couples meeting and falling in love while competing on the show.
The supposed curse, as it is known, refers to individuals taking part in Strictly who are already in relationships and who end up finding romance with fellow participants.
A couple of years ago, Strictly Come Dancing co-presenter Claudia Winkleman shared her views on the curse, telling Digital Spy: ‘I understand, it’s very intense.
‘I don’t believe in the curse, but I think lots of people have come in single and they might have met somebody or had a little romance.’
The 52-year-old continued, stating: ‘It’s intoxicating, Strictly, because you’re all part of this extraordinary juggernaut. So I don’t think people fall in love with people, they might just love the experience.’
Nonetheless, that hasn’t stopped some people from getting together during filming.
Which couples have the Strictly Come Dancing curse affected?
One of the most significant cases of the Strictly curse of recent years occurred in 2018 when comedian Seann Walsh was photographed kissing his professional partner Katya Jones.
Katya, 35, was married to fellow dancer Neil Jones, 42, at the time, while Seann, 38, was in a relationship with actor Rebecca Humphries.
After the pictures emerged, Katya shared a statement on Twitter, writing: ‘I’m so sorry about any offence or hurt I may have caused with my actions.
‘I wasn’t thinking and it was a one-off mistake after some drinks. I love my husband and we are very happy together, this is not a reflection on our relationship.’
In August 2019, she and Neil announced their separation after 11 years together, while Seann and Rebecca split shortly after the incident.
Full list of celebrities impacted by ‘Strictly curse’
Here are all the celebrities and professional dancers who had relationship breakdowns during Strictly, or shortly after, and were romantically linked to their partner on the series…
Seann Walsh and Katya Jones (2018)
Comedian Seann Walsh was photographed kissing his professional partner Katya Jones. His partner, actor Rebecca Humphries, ended their relationship. Katya’s marriage to fellow Strictly dancer ended the following year.
While Stacey Dooley was competing in Strictly, she was in a relationship with personal trainer Sam Tucknott, but they ended after the series.
The documentarian has denied she and Kevin became romantically involved while taking part in the competition. The couple now share a daughter, Minnie.
Dianne Buswell split from her boyfriend, Emmerdale actor Anthony Quinlan while taking part in the competition with YouTube star Joe Sugg. Dianne now lives with her boyfriend in Brighton and documents their life together online.
Natasha Kaplinsky and Brendan Cole (2004)
Brendan Cole split with fellow Strictly pro-Camilla Dallerup midway through the first-ever series, which he eventually won with journalist Natasha Kaplinsky.
‘There were rumours of whether or not Natasha and I were seeing each other, and my relationship broke down in the middle of the series. It was pretty tumultuous, and tricky to say the least,’ he told Metro.co.uk.
Kristina Rihanoff and Ben Cohen (2013)
Following his appearance on Strictly, Ben Cohen split from his wife of 11 years, Abby. The rugby player has denied ending his marriage to be with Kristina Rihanoff.
He has since become engaged to Kristina, and they have daughter Milena together. Ben also has two children from his previous marriage.
Joe Calzaghe and Kristina Rihanoff (2009)
Before starting a relationship with Ben, Kristina was with Joe Calzaghe for four years.
Boxer Joe ended his relationship with his girlfriend of five years, Jo-Emma Larvin, weeks into starting on Strictly.
Matt Di Angelo and Flavia Cacace (2007)
Flavia Cacace and actor Matt Di Angelo became a couple after her relationship with dancer Vincent Simone ended.
‘It was a disaster. It all happened in the most atrocious way,’ she has since reflected.
The couple lasted two years, and Flavia is now married to her 2010 partner, another actor, Jimi Mistry.
Georgia May Foote and Giovanni Pernice (2015)
Although initially dispelling any rumours of romance, Georgia May Foote did eventually leave her actor boyfriend Sean Ward.
She moved in with Giovanni Pernice following the competition, but they split within a year.
In November 2013, Countdown star Rachel Riley announced that she was separating from her husband, Jamie Gilbert, who she met at university.
She is now married to Strictly dance partner Pasha Kovalev, and they have two children together.
Weeks into Strictly, Ricky split from his long-time girlfriend, and Hollyoaks co-star Carley Stenson, before moving on to date Natalie Lowe.
Carley was once again supporting a partner on Strictly in 2016 when her husband Danny Mac signed up. The couple remain together.
Great British Bake Off winner John Whaite confessed he ‘fell in love’ with his Strictly professional partner Johannes Radebe. He briefly split from Paul Atkins before they married earlier this year.
In 2018, television presenter Stacey Dooley won the sixteenth series of Strictly Come Dancing with her partner, Kevin Clifton.
The couple confirmed they were in a relationship by April of the next year and have since welcomed their first child. However, while Stacey was competing in Strictly, she had been in a relationship with personal trainer Sam Tucknott.
Stacey, 37, has denied she and Kevin, 41, became romantically involved while taking part in the competition, stating: ‘It was much later down the line for us.’
Kevin, on the other hand, was previously married to fellow Strictly Come Dancing professional dancer Karen Hauer, announcing their split in March 2018 after three years of marriage.
After ending Strictly as runners-up in 2018, Joe Sugg, 33, and Dianne Buswell, 35, got together following much speculation about the state of their relationship.
Dianne split from her boyfriend, Emmerdale actor Anthony Quinlan, while taking part in the competition.
However, the dancer previously said she doesn’t believe in the Strictly curse.
‘Obviously we spend so many hours with our partner but we’re professional dancers, we have done this our whole lives,’ she told Heart in October 2019.
‘It’s normal for us. It doesn’t mean just because you spend so much time together you’re going to end up together.’
In November 2013, Countdown star Rachel Riley, 38, announced that she was separating from her husband, Jamie Gilbert, who she met at university.
Later that year, she and her Strictly dance partner Pasha Kovalev, 44, started dating. They married in 2019 and have two daughters together.
Bake Off winner John Whaite also acknowledged the Strictly curse’s power – after admitting to falling in love with his dance partner Johannes Radebe, 37, while taking part in the show.
Now, John, 35, (who competed in the 2021 series of Strictly) opened up ahead of the publishing of his memoir ‘Dancing on Eggshells: Kitchen, ballroom & the messy inbetween’ confessing he ‘fell in love’ with his Strictly professional partner Johannes Radebe.
The pair were the first male same-sex couple to take part in the show and ended up as runners-up, with Rose Ayling-Ellis and partner Giovanni Pernice ultimately proving victorious in the show’s 19th series.
Is it actually a Strictly blessing?
In 2022, Tyler West and Molly Rainford ‘confirmed’ their relationship after months of speculation.
The pair met back in September last year on the competitive dance show, and rumours had flown around after it was reported they were getting closer since they hit the road for the Strictly live tour.
Radio host Tyler, 28, gave the phenomenon a rebrand and referred to the curse as a ‘blessing’ as it led him to EastEnders actress Molly, 23. Sweet!
The couple are a little different in that they were not paired together, but rather, they were both competing in the series with professional dancers – Molly was dancing with Carlos Gu, while Tyler was moving and grooving with Dianne.
Also, catching each other’s eyes across the dance floor were Gemma Atkinson, 39, and Gorka Marquez, 34, in 2017.
Once again they were separated during the week with partners Aljaž Škorjanec and Alexandra Burke respectively, but sparks flew between the singletons. Just a couple of months after their series drew to a close, they announced their relationship to the world.
They’ve since gone on to get engaged, and have welcomed two children together – Thiago, one, and Mia, five.
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