The Strictly curse explained, as John Whaite confesses love for Johannes Radebe

Strictly Come Dancing's infamous 'Strictly curse' has struck again, with Bake Off star John Whaite confessing he fell in love with his professional partner Johannes Radebe.

The BBC family entertainment show might seem like one of the most feel-good things on TV, but there's a darker side to the dance contest that's a little more difficult for the celebrities' other halves to stomach.

Strictly success relies on hours of intense rehearsals with your professional partner, spending all your spare time in their arms and demonstrating sizzling chemistry on the dancefloor.

Read more: Strictly Come Dancing 2023: Official line up, dancers and judges for new series

Sometimes that performance bond can spill over into reality and stars boundaries between their professional relationship and romantic love begin to blue.

In 20 years, the Strictly curse has become almost as famous a part of the show as the dances and costumes, with many a celebrity contestant falling for their pro dancer partner over the years.

With multiple engagements, weddings and even Strictly babies we look back at the couples whose dancefloor sparks lit up love affairs behind the scenes.

John Whaite and Johannes Radebe

The Great British Bake Off winner John Whaite was runner-up on the dance show in 2021. He has just revealed that “spent some time apart” from his fiance and partner of 15 years, Paul Atkins, after he "fell in love" with his dance partner Johannes Radebe.

Whaite said after sharing something so important with Radebe he became overpowered by his feelings.

He told The Times: “I fell in love with him. I can’t speak for him – because I’m not allowed to, legally – but it felt like there was love there.”

Whaite is now reconciled with his fiance.

He said: “I have to be mindful that there’s more than my own desires to consider here. If it would be tricky for Paul for me to be in contact with Johannes, then it’s a sacrifice that I have to make.”

Tyler West and Molly Rainford

It's not always love between celebrities and their professional dance partners that blossoms in the Strictly studio.

TV presenter and DJ Tyler West and CBBC star Molly Rainford have confirmed they are dating after they both took part in last year's show.

He told the Evening Standard: "Mols is wicked! She’s amazing, man. She’s my world, [and] my best friend. It feels great that I’ve gone through an experience like [Strictly] with her and come out the other side.”

The Strictly sparks can fly anywhere it seems...

AJ Odudu and Kai Widdrington

The should-have-been finalists' chemistry on the dancefloor was so electric that it prompted no end of romance rumours in 2021.

But the only heartbreak that Widdrington, who was in his first year as a pro, and TV presenter Odudu really suffered was in having to drop out of the final at the last minute because of Odudu being injured.

They created some memorable moments in the ballroom, with the judges saying Odudu could have been a pro if she'd started dancing earlier in life.

Odudu admitted that no one had been sliding into her DMs during the series because their romantic dances were so believable, while Widdrington later started dating pro cast co-star Nadiya Bychkova.

Adam Peaty and Katya Jones

In the 2021 series, viewers speculated that Olympic swimmer Adam Peaty had almost kissed his partner Katya Jones towards the end of their week four Argentine Tango, something that Peaty strongly denied.

He tweeted: “To everyone who wants to see what they want, your comments have real life consequences. I will not be overcome or lowered by your gossip. Protect your energy.”

Peaty's partner Eiri Munro also made a TikTok mocking the rumours, although they did later split.

Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton

Another of the more memorable relationships to come from the ballroom was 2018 winning couple Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton.

While Clifton had already split from Strictly dancer wife Karen Hauer earlier that year, Dooley was still in a relationship with Sam Tucknott – who gave a no-holds-barred tabloid interview about his thoughts on Clifton, labelling him "a full on p***k".

Read more: Stacey Dooley reveals why she isn't rushing to marry Strictly’s Kevin Clifton

He also called the show "sleazy" and renamed it "Strictly Come Dating" after Dooley and Clifton, who are still together, announced their relationship in 2019 – and in January 2023 they welcomed baby daughter Minnie.

Another of Clifton's former dance partners, Louise Redknapp, split from husband of nearly 20 years Jamie Redknapp after appearing in the 2016 series.

While there was no suggestion that she had had an affair with Clifton, she said that Strictly had opened her eyes to what her life could be like.

Seann Walsh and Katya Jones

Comedian Seann Walsh didn't leave his partner Rebecca Humphries or Katya's Strictly dancer husband Neil Jones laughing in 2018 when photos emerged of them kissing on a night out.

Things got even worse when it came out that the night in question had been Humphries' birthday and that he had argued about not coming home to celebrate with her.

Both Walsh and Jones apologised to viewers for the "drunken mistake", but much more memorable was Humphries' open letter where she revealed that he had not in fact apologised to her, had displayed some toxic behaviour throughout their relationship, mocked him for adding an extra "n" to his name, and told him she was "keeping the cat".

Unfortunately, Katya and Neil Jones' marriage never recovered from the scandal despite initially trying to make things work, and they eventually split in 2019.

Gemma Atkinson and Gorka Marquez

Gemma Atkinson met her fiance Gorka Marquez through the show in 2017. They were not partnered together during the TV series but began dating shortly afterwards when they danced together on the Strictly live tour.

The soap actor and the pro dancer have a baby daughter Mia, born in July 2019, and welcomed son Thiago in July 2023. They are engaged to be married.

Georgia May Foote and Giovanni Pernice

Coronation Street star and 2015 contestant Georgia May Foote was in a relationship with her cobbles co-star Sean Ward when she signed up to Strictly.

Not long after the series ended she announced their split and later confirmed she was dating dance partner Giovanni Pernice, who she stayed with until August 2016.

Rachel Riley and Pasha Kovalev

When Countdown star Rachel Riley joined the contest in 2013, she had only been married for a year to her university sweetheart.

However, she split with Jamie Gilbert just months after the show and later announced that she was in a relationship with dance partner Pasha Kovalev.

Read more: Rachel Riley admits struggle to spend quality time with Strictly husband

Theirs has been a long-lasting romance – they married in Las Vegas in 2019 and now have two daughters together.

Flavia Cacace and Jimi Mistry

Flavia Cacace met her husband, EastEnders star Jimi Mistry, when they were partnered together in 2010.

They got married in 2013 and now live on a farm together in Devon.

But when they met, Cacace was in a relationship with another EastEnders actor, Matt Di Angelo.

Matt Di Angelo and Flavia Cacace

Cacace was not a stranger to the Strictly Curse.

In 2007 she fell for EastEnders actor Matt Di Angelo when they were paired, causing drama backstage as she had been in a long-term relationship with fellow Strictly pro Vincent Simone.

Joe Calzaghe and Kristina Rihanoff

A couple of the pro dancers' names come up time and again in relation to 'the curse', and Rihanoff first dabbled in a partner romance with boxer Joe Calzaghe.

He left his girlfriend of five years just one week into training for the 2009 show and ended up in a relationship with Rihanoff that lasted for four years — much longer than his ballroom stint.

Read more: Sophie Ellis-Bextor 'could have done with emotional support' during Strictly

But while the couple's relationship fizzled out, it wasn't the last time Rihanoff found love on the dancefloor...

Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff

One of the best known cases of the Strictly Curse involved rugby champion Ben Cohen, who left his wife, the mother of his twin daughters, in 2014 after appearing in the 2013 series.

He later announced that he was in a relationship with Rihanoff and the couple are still together now, having welcomed a daughter in 2016, and are planning a wedding after Cohen proposed in the Maldives in October 2022.

Cohen's ex-wife Abby Blayney unsurprisingly had something to say about her former husband's time on the show, but has since apologised for insulting Rihanoff.

Natasha Kaplinsky and Brendan Cole

The Strictly Curse dates right back to series one, where viewers couldn't help but notice the chemistry between Natasha Kaplinsky and Brendan Cole.

While rumours flew about the pair, they never admitted to a romance, although Cole did end his engagement to fellow Strictly pro Camilla Dallerup during the series.

Read more: Strictly Come Dancing winners: All the celebrity glitterball champions so far

“There was chemistry, of course, and I certainly fell in love with dancing, but I did not fall in love with Brendan,” Kaplinsky has said.

Watch: Les Dennis completes the Strictly line-up for 2023