AJ Pritchard red-faced in Mollie King 'girlfriend' grilling by Strictly's Zoe Ball
AJ PRITCHARD, was partnered with Mollie King on Strictly Come Dancing last year, was grilled about his “girlfriends” on It Takes Two tonight as Zoe Ball left him flustered with questions about his love life.
Strictly: Zoe asks AJ if Mollie was ever his girlfriend
The 23-year-old Strictly Come Dancing pro was rumoured to have struck up a romance with Mollie, 31, after they were paired together on the show last year.
On It Takes Two tonight, Zoe, 47, played a clip of the song AJ and his new partner Lauren Steadman, 25, will be dancing the Jive to on Saturday night: Avril Lavigne’s Girlfriend.
“Can you relate to this song, AJ?” she asked, a mischievous glint in her eye.
“Yes, no, no, yes… I don’t know!” he said, sounding unsure as to the correct answer.
“Have you had talks about him and his girlfriends at all?” Zoe asked Lauren, to which the Paralympian replied: “Well, we did ask. I was like, ‘So, have you had a girlfriend AJ?’ He was like, ‘No.’”
“No, no. No girlfriends, no,” AJ chipped in, looking slightly embarrassed.
“No?” the host quizzed, adding: “Mollie wasn’t a girlfriend then?”
“No!” he exclaimed, laughing self-consciously.
“I was just asking!” she said, holding her hands up. “I was just checking!”
“Mollie is coming to watch, actually, at the weekend,” AJ revealed, trying to move the conversation along but stumbling over his words.
“I will be sat in the audience as Lauren spray paints out the ex-girlfriend’s name."
“Have we distracted you there?” Zoe giggled as he struggled to get to the end of the sentence.
Nonetheless, AJ powered on through, adding: “And then walks over and removed me from the girl I’m sat with.”
BBC Radio 1 favourite Mollie and her professional dance partner were subject to swirling romance rumours throughout their time on Strictly last year, with speculation continuing after the series ended.
However, they both maintained they were never anything more than friends.
Meanwhile, AJ and Lauren have been hard at work in training, rehearsing for their energetic Jive this coming Saturday.
AJ told Zoe practice is “going great”, while Lauren said she has found herself taken with the routine and style.
“I was really worried because everybody said I was going to be out of breath and that I was going to struggle to keep up,” she said. “But I’ve actually loved the fast-paced side of it.
“It reminds me of my training,” the Paratriathlete added. “I’m loving it.
Zoe couldn’t resist bringing the subject back round to AJ’s love life before she signed off at the end of the interview, telling viewers: “Anyone who wants to send any details in to AJ, he is accepting. I’m joking, of course.”
Strictly Come Dancing continues Saturday at 7.05pm on BBC One.