The curse of Strictly Come Dancing is now a well-worn legend of reality TV. Beneath the dazzle and glitter is a rotting wasteland of discarded relationships – some splits apparently caused by the sheer bodily proximity to the dancers (see Kristina Rihanoff), and others caused by the celebrity realising the dance competition has injected new meaning into their life (see Louise Redknapp). Strictly is the Love Island for people who think they are above shows like that – they pretend they are here for the skill and the artistry, but what everyone really wants to know is who’s getting off with who.
And so this year, Strictly fans are getting invested in the supposed romance between popstar Mollie King and her partner, dancer AJ Pritchard. During Saturday’s show, presenter Claudia Winkleman suggested the pair had spent half of their training time kissing, to the kind of hilarity and glee not seen for most people since the day after the school disco.
Could this alleged relationship have been engineered by Strictly producers? “I was single and they put me with the single guy!” said actor Kara Tointon in 2015, after being paired with dancer Artem Chigvintsev (they dated between 2010 and 2014). “I was so angry. I was determined we wouldn’t get together and then of course you’re spending so much time with this person and he was so wonderful … So yes, it was inevitable really.”
Dancer Flavia Cacace has said she thinks being on the show “sends the celebrities mad. Some people can’t handle all that physical closeness. They fall in love with this dream, this fantasy. Our job is to make them feel the centre of attention. It’s very addictive and it goes to some people’s heads.” But there have been a few enduring relationships so far. Countdown presenter Rachel Riley and her partner Pasha Kovalev are, to tabloid knowledge, still together. Rugby player Ben Cohen and his partner Rihanoff had a baby last year, and actor Jimi Mistry and his partner Cacace got married in 2013. Will Mollie and AJ last? Are they even together? Who cares? The answer, of course, is everybody – for there is currently no greater pressing issue in the world.
