All the Strictly exes who had to work together after splitting – as Kai and Nadiya ‘refuse to stand next to each other’

PROFESSIONAL dancers Kai and Nadiya are said to be avoiding each other backstage on Strictly Come Dancing.

But it turns out, the pair are by no means the only couple who have been forced to work together on the BBC One show after splitting up.

The Sun previously revealed backstage tension engulfing the show as Kai Widdrington, 29, and Nadiya Bychkova, 35, 'refused to stand next to each other.'

Following their break-up, the duo were reported to be completely avoiding each other behind the scenes.

Things are so frosty between the professionals that they stand on opposite sides of the set during the live BBC broadcasts.

Ever Saturday night, Claudia Winkleman gathers the pros and celebrities together in the 'Clauditorium' after each performance.

When The Traitors host interviews the contestants, Kai and Nadiya have purposely stood apart during the segments.

But the duo are not the only couple to have fallen victim to the Strictly Come Dancing curse.

During the very first series, Brendan Cole left his fellow Strictly professional fiancé, Camilla Dallerup in the spring of 2004.

He was said to have fallen for his celebrity partner and inaugural winner Natasha Kaplinsky, although the pair did not confirm they were romantically involved.

Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace were together off the screen until 2007.

She waltzed off with her Strictly partner, Matt Di Angelo, who was just 20-years-old at the time.

Although he insisted that he wasn’t the reason for the split, as he confessed to the Daily Mail: "The funny thing was the story did not start off as true, but the more you read it, the more you started to believe it and actually act on it."

Professional Kevin Clifton tied the knot with fellow Strictly dancer Karen Hauer in July 2015.

However, less than three years later the pair called it quits in March 2018, although she insisted they were still friends during an interview on the Chris Evans Breakfast Show.

One of the biggest scandals to engulf the show came in October 2018 when Seann Walsh was snapped locking lips with his dance partner Katya Jones.

This was at the time when Katya was married to fellow professional Neil Jones.

Seann and Katya gave a toe-curling apology to fans on the spin-off show It Takes Two, before their 'dance of shame' was watched by 10 million people.

Katya and Neil initially put on a brave face during the scandal before they called time on their romance in 2019 after 11 years.

Reflecting on Kai and Nadiya, a source revealed to The Sun: "It's painfully obvious Nadiya and Kai are in the awkward post-break up phase and struggling to be near one another. 

"Obviously that's the risk that comes with dating someone at work, so they're both trying their best to steer clear of each other.

"When the pair are in the Clauditorium, they're always on opposite sides. Although they may have big smiles on their faces when the cameras are running, it's been very tense between them. 

"They refuse to be near each other at all on set- but there's not much room up there with all the professionals.

";They just have to do their best to avoid each other every weekend."

Strictly come Dancing is available to watch on BBC One and stream on BBC iPlayer.