It’d be easy to think that the hardest thing about ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ is learning how to tell your Argentine Tango from your Viennese Waltz, but the celebs taking part each year often face a much tougher task - avoiding the infamous ‘Strictly’ curse.
The show has been rocked by the news that contestant Seann Walsh has shared a kiss with professional dancer partner Katya Jones during a night out. The pair were caught on camera in a passionate embrace in the street, becoming the latest victims of the so-called curse.
The curse refers to either when contestants whose relationships come to an end while competing on the show, or those who embark on romances with their dance partner when either one, or both, of them are already with someone else.
The curse claimed its first victim in 2004, when newsreader Natasha Kaplinsky split from her partner after appearing on the show, and since then, ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ has played a part in ending plenty of other relationships...
Rachel Riley
The ‘Countdown’ presenter announced her split from her husband just weeks after her stint on the show.
The following year, Rachel and her professional partner Pasha confirmed they were dating, but she remained insistent that ‘Strictly’ had nothing to do with her marriage split.
Susanna Reid
Susanna’s marriage ended in February 2014, weeks after she finished as a runner-up in the competition.
Mum-of-two Susanna continued to live with her ex, Dominic Cotton, in the months that followed.
Caroline Flack
Caroline and boyfriend Jack Street called time on their relationship, during her winning-stint on the 2014 series. The ‘Love Island’ presenter had dated the music manager for 18 months.
Louise Redknapp
After reaching the final of the 2016 series, Louise began to be plagued with rumours her 19-year marriage to former footballer Jamie Redknapp was on the rocks.
Months later, the couple confirmed they had gone their separate ways.
Joe Calzaghe
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.
Ben Cohen
While on the show, Ben denied rumours that he was romancing his pro partner Kristina Rihanoff, though he later split from his wife Abby.
He and Kristina went on to confirm their relationship but remained insistent it had only began after the breakdown of his marriage. The couple now have one child together.
Flavia Cacace and Matt Di Angelo
The former ‘EastEnders’ star reportedly first hooked up with Flavia 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 much longer...
Flavia Cacace (again)
Just a year after getting together with Matt, Flavia ended the relationship and found love with her new dance partner Jimi. The couple married in 2013.
Natasha Kaplinsky and Brendan Cole
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 were just friends, Natasha and Brendan both split from their partners shortly after winning the series.
Daisy Lowe
Daisy split from her boyfriend Bradley “Frankie” Wade during her stint on ‘Strictly’ in 2016. The relationship was still quite new and the pair struggled to find the time to see each other with her commitments to the show.
Sunetra Sarker
Sunetra split from her husband of 10 years just before filming for the 2014 series began.
Dani Harmer
‘Tracey Beaker’ star Dani split from her boyfriend just days after filming began in 2012.
Helen George
Just after Helen announced she was one of the 2015 contestants, Helen also revealed she was splitting from her husband of four years, Oliver Boot.
Georgia May Foote
Georgia entered ‘Strictly’ while in a relationship with former ‘Coronation Street’ co-star Sean Ward. However, just after the series ended, the couple announced their split, and it wasn’t long before she embarked on a relationship with dance partner Giovanni Pernice. The two eventually split after less than a year together.
