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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Emma Gritt

Strictly star Nadiya Bychkova vows to stay raunchy after 2020 partner snub

Strictly star Nadiya Bychkova has promised fans plenty of steamy routines after her raunchiness saw her demoted to group dances only in last year's series.

The gorgeous Ukranian dance pro, 31, has previously danced with former EastEnders hunk Davood Ghadami, Blue star Lee Ryan, and goalie David James.

But it was rumoured that the BBC were so desperate to avoid scandal in the 2020 series that it was decided that the sexy mum-of-one wouldn't be paired up with anyone.

Speaking to The Sun, the former Playboy model said: “Last year was a very different experience because I didn’t have a partner. It was difficult.

Which celebs would you like to see on Strictly 2021? Tell us in the comments below...

Nadiya Bychkova was sidelined for the 2020 series of Strictly, but she hopes she'll be paired with a woman this year (WireImage)

“The reason I was given was that the run was much shorter and there weren’t as many celebrities.

“I saw the rumours that I wasn’t given a partner because of my flirting. But the thing is, I really haven’t done anything wrong."

Nadiya also told the paper that not only was the group dancing a new experience for her, but she found being separated from her fiancé, footballer Matija Skarabot, and their 4-year-old daughter really tough.

Due to strict covid restrictions, she was forced to spend ten weeks alone in a hotel room, quarantining away from everyone she knows in the UK as well as being apart from her little family.

Nadiya Bychkova dances with fellow pro Graziano Di Prima in the opening of the 2020 series (BBC/Guy Levy)

This year she hopes it will be back to business as usual - but there is one other change she is hoping for.

She admitted that she would love to be paired with a female star, following in the footsteps of Kayta Jones and Olympic boxer Nicola Adams.

Nadiya Bychkova and fellow pro Giovanni Pernice (PA)

Nadiya explained: “I’d love to take on that challenge. You would have to create a different chemistry with a woman, but every partner is different anyway.

"Choreographing a dance with a woman — working out how it looks — would be so interesting and I love to create new things.

“There’s a lot of freedom in it, too, because nobody knows what to expect from you."

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