Bruno Tonioli Claims Strictly Come Dancing Has Been Missing 'Romance' This Series

The long-serving judge has been with Strictly since it began, but feels there's one thing that's been amiss this year.

With a brand new judge, elaborate group performances and Craig Revel Horwood literally doing a number in drag, you might argue that the current series of Strictly Come Dancing has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at us.

However, as the show draws to a close for another year, judge Bruno Tonioli has admitted he feels there’s been something missing this time around – a bit of romance.

At this stage, we probably don’t need to remind you about the so-called Strictly “curse”, which has seen a large number of celebrities and professionals splitting up with their long-term partners either during or shortly after the series, many of whom have gone on to get together with their professional partners.

The “curse” is a bit of a contentious issue for many people on Strictly, but for Bruno, it’s apparently not just something he enjoys, but something he has missed on the show in 2019.

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Bruno Tonioli
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I’ve never had anything wrong with the romances,” he told The Sun. “It’s actually quite nice when they get together. It’s life.

“It adds a bit of frisson of excitement when it happens on the dancefloor. So I think I was missing that a little bit in this series.”

From last year’s series, three of the final four celebrities are now in relationships with people they met on Strictly.

Eventual winner Stacey Dooley and Joe Sugg are both coupled up with their professional dance partners, Kevin Clifton and Dianne Buswell, while Ashley Roberts is dating Giovanni Pernice.

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Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton
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Then, of course, there’s comedian Seann Walsh, who made headlines when he was caught on camera kissing his professional partner Katya Jones after a night out in London, despite both of them being in relationships with other people at the time.

Only three celebrities remain in this year’s competition, with Emma Barton, Karim Zeroual and Kelvin Fletcher set to fight it out for the Glitterball Trophy in Friday night’s live final.

'Strictly' Curse Victims
Rachel Riley(01 of10)
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The 'Countdown' presenter announced her split from her husband just weeks after her stint on the show. Earlier this year, it was confirmed that Rachel and her partner Pasha Kovalev are dating, however, she remains insistent that 'Strictly' had nothing to do with her marriage split. (credit:Joe Giddens/PA Archive)
Sunetra Sarker(02 of10)
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Sunetra split from her husband of 10 years just before filming for the 2014 series began. (credit:Eamonn M. McCormack via Getty Images)
Susanna Reid(03 of10)
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Susanna's marriage ended in February 2014, weeks after she finished as a runner-up in the competition. Susanna is still living with her ex, Dominic Cotton, and their two children. (credit:Ian West/PA Archive)
Caroline Flack(04 of10)
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Flackers and boyfriend Jack Street have called time on their relationship, according to reports. The former 'Xtra Factor' presenter dated the music manager for 18 months. (credit:Danny Martindale via Getty Images)
Ben Cohen(05 of10)
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Ben denied rumours that he was romancing his pro partner Kristina Rihanoff, though he later split from his wife Abby days after photos of him and Kristina looking cosy on the tube were posted online. (credit:Steve Thorne via Getty Images)
Matt Di Angelo(06 of10)
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The 'EastEnders' star reportedly first hooked up with Flavia Cacace during their time dancing together on the 2008 series - on which Flavia's boyfriend Vincent Simone was also a dancer.However, they weren't together for long... (credit:Jon Furniss via Getty Images)
Jimi Mistry(07 of10)
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Just a year after getting together with Matt, Flavia ended the relationship after finding love with her new dance partner Jimi. The couple married in 2013. (credit:Dave Hogan via Getty Images)
Joe Calzaghe(08 of10)
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Boxer Joe and pro dancer Kristina Rihanoff initally denied romance rumours when they were paired together in 2009, however Joe split from his girlfriend just weeks later. Joe and Kristina later confirmed that they were a couple, before splitting after four years together. (credit:Mark Cuthbert via Getty Images)
Dani Harmer (09 of10)
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'Tracey Beaker' star Dani split from her boyfriend just days after filming began in 2012. (credit:John Phillips via Getty Images)
Natasha Kaplinsky (10 of10)
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Newsreader Natasha and Brendan were plagued by romance rumours when they were paired up for the first ever series of 'Strictly' in 2004. Despite being insistent that they weer just friends, Natasha and Brendan both split from their partners shortly after winning the series. (credit:MJ Kim via Getty Images)