Strictly Come Dancing’s Kevin Clifton addresses claims Stacey Dooley made him quit series
STRICTLY COME DANCING'S Kevin Clifton announced he was stepping down from the BBC series earlier this year to focus on his theatre career. Speaking about his exit, Kevin insisted his decision to leave wasn't down to his partner Stacey Dooley.
Strictly: Kevin Clifton on rumours Stacey Dooley made him quit
Strictly Come Dancing professional Kevin Clifton won the BBC series in 2018 with girlfriend Stacey Dooley before going on to compete with Anneka Rice. However, after several years on the show, Kevin revealed he was leaving the show to pursue other opportunities. However, he was forced to address claims Stacey was behind his decision to step down.
Speaking on This Morning after he announced his exit in February, Kevin set the record straight on his decision to leave.
“Poor Stacey,” Rochelle Humes began. “She has taken a little bit of stick.
“You know, I have seen a lot of stories in the press saying it was something to do with her.”
Rochelle added: “Does that just come with the territory of being a woman in this game? She was just supporting her man!
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“It seems a little bit harsh to be honest,” the host added.
Kevin explained: “I know, it is always the woman's fault isn’t it? It’s like I am incapable of making a decision."
Rochelle joked: “Well you couldn’t have made that decision without her saying so, right?”
“I did speak about it with her and she said to me ‘It has to be your decision, no one else can make this decision for you. It has to come from you,'" Kevin replied.
“And she is supporting you,” Rochelle added.
Eamonn Holmes chipped in to ask: “Is she still dancing?”
Kevin laughed: “Not professionally but she never stops dancing.
“I’ll text her and ask what are you doing and she will send me a video of her dancing in the kitchen. So yeah she never stops."
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Strictly Come Dancing will return later this year with a shorter series in the hopes of keeping the contestants as safe as possible due to the coronavirus pandemic.
But all fans really want to know is, which celebrities will be taking to the dance floor this year?
The professional dancers have been confirmed but the line-up is still tightly under wraps.
Teasing the series, Aljaz Skorjanec recently told Access All Areas on Fubar Radio: "Obviously things are going to be very different this year.
"More than anything, I’m so happy that the season is going ahead.
"I feel like people would be even sadder if there was no Strictly on. There’s been so much bad going on so I feel like a little bit of positivity on a Saturday evening is exactly what people need. What we all need.”
He added of the possibility of a same-sex couple: "I’ve thought about that and even watching Dancing on Ice, they did such an amazing job.
"Even around the world, not just Dancing on Ice, they’ve had same sex couples.”
Strictly Come Dancing is set to return to BBC One later this year.