PROFESSIONAL dancers Kai and Nadiya are said to be avoiding each other backstage on Strictly Come Dancing.
But it turns out, the pair are by no means the only couple who have been forced to work together on the BBC One show after splitting up.
Nadiya Bychkova and Kai Widdrington are reportedly avoiding each other backstage after their split[/caption]
The pair have stood apart during the Claudatorium segments of the show[/caption]
Many of the professionals have had to work together after their split[/caption]
The Sun previously revealed backstage tension engulfing the show as Kai Widdrington, 29, and Nadiya Bychkova, 35, ‘refused to stand next to each other.’
Following their break-up, the duo were reported to be completely avoiding each other behind the scenes.
Things are so frosty between the professionals that they stand on opposite sides of the set during the live BBC broadcasts.
Ever Saturday night, Claudia Winkleman gathers the pros and celebrities together in the ‘Clauditorium’ after each performance.
When The Traitors host interviews the contestants, Kai and Nadiya have purposely stood apart during the segments.
But the duo are not the only couple to have fallen victim to the Strictly Come Dancing curse.
During the very first series, Brendan Cole left his fellow Strictly professional fiancé, Camilla Dallerup in the spring of 2004.
He was said to have fallen for his celebrity partner and inaugural winner Natasha Kaplinsky, although the pair did not confirm they were romantically involved.
Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace were together off the screen until 2007.
She waltzed off with her Strictly partner, Matt Di Angelo, who was just 20-years-old at the time.
Although he insisted that he wasn’t the reason for the split, as he confessed to the Daily Mail: “The funny thing was the story did not start off as true, but the more you read it, the more you started to believe it and actually act on it.”
Professional Kevin Clifton tied the knot with fellow Strictly dancer Karen Hauer in July 2015.
However, less than three years later the pair called it quits in March 2018, although she insisted they were still friends during an interview on the Chris Evans Breakfast Show.
One of the biggest scandals to engulf the show came in October 2018 when Seann Walsh was snapped locking lips with his dance partner Katya Jones.
Strictly Curse – The Lowdown
STRICTLY Come Dancing’s latest series has already been hit by rumours of a BBC show ‘curse’ – yet what is it?
A host of Strictly Come Dancing stars have been struck by the Strictly Curse during the past two decades.
This is where celebrities who may or may not be attached in the outside world become more than friends with their professional partners.
A total of 20 relationships are said to have been impacted so far over the show’s 20 years.
It has seen relationships crumble with dance floor romances and punishing rehearsal schedules to blame.
This includes the partnerships of Louise and Jamie Redknapp as well as Kevin Clifton and Karen Hauer.
Controversially, Judge Craig Revel Horwood once said of the curse: “I think of it as a blessing, to be honest. One person is married, the other one had a girlfriend but my point in this entire thing is: if you come on Strictly, sometimes you are in a relationship that is not working anyway.
“There has to be something wrong in your relationship before it all goes awry.”
Series one winner Brendan Cole left his fiancé, fellow Strictly professional Camilla Dallerup, during filming for the very first series in spring 2004.
Brendan was said to have fallen for his celebrity partner and inaugural winner Natasha Kaplinsky, although the duo didn’t confirm they were romantically involved.
This was at the time when Katya was married to fellow professional Neil Jones.
Seann and Katya gave a toe-curling apology to fans on the spin-off show It Takes Two, before their ‘dance of shame’ was watched by 10 million people.
Katya and Neil initially put on a brave face during the scandal before they called time on their romance in 2019 after 11 years.
Reflecting on Kai and Nadiya, a source revealed to The Sun: “It’s painfully obvious Nadiya and Kai are in the awkward post-break up phase and struggling to be near one another.
Strictly 2024 pairings
Here’s who is matched with who this series…
Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell
Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas
JB Gill and Amy Dowden MBE
Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe
Nick Knowles and Luba Mushtuk
Paul Merson and Karen Hauer
Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystał
Punam Krishan and Gorka Márquez
Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec
Tom Dean MBE and Nadiya Bychkova
Toyah Willcox and Neil Jones
Sam Quek MBE and Nikita Kuzmin
Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola
Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu
Wynne Evans and Katya Jones
“Obviously that’s the risk that comes with dating someone at work, so they’re both trying their best to steer clear of each other.
“When the pair are in the Clauditorium, they’re always on opposite sides. Although they may have big smiles on their faces when the cameras are running, it’s been very tense between them.
“They refuse to be near each other at all on set- but there’s not much room up there with all the professionals.
“They just have to do their best to avoid each other every weekend.”
Neil and Katya split after she was seen kissing her partner Seann Walsh[/caption]
Karen Hauer and Kevin Clifton called it quits in March 2018 after a three year marriage[/caption]
Flavia Cacace and Vincent Simone were together off screen until 2007[/caption]
Strictly come Dancing is available to watch on BBC One and stream on BBC iPlayer.
