Strictly pro Neil Jones reveals the truth about my split from Katya and why he didn’t punch Seann
STRICTLY dancer Neil Jones has spoken for the first time about his controversial split from wife Katya, saying: “We tried to make it work but we couldn’t.”
In an exclusive interview, he told how they battled to save their relationship in the wake of Katya being caught snogging comic Seann Walsh, her celebrity dance partner, on the BBC1 show.
Neil, 38, says: “We found that we’d grown apart like people do, so we were like, ‘OK, let’s go our separate ways’. We are lucky that we don’t have kids.
“It had nothing to do with what happened [with Seann].
“We were moving in different directions but we are friends again now. Katya is a great girl and I’ve got nothing bad to say about her.”
Strictly erupted in scandal in October 2018 after Katya, 31, and comic Seann, 34, were pictured kissing outside a pub after weeks of flirting on the dance floor.
Despite trying to get their six-year marriage back on track, Neil and Katya announced their divorce just ten months later.
On the snaps that shocked the showbiz world, Neil — who has remained tight-lipped on his ordeal until now — says: “We’re human, we all see things in completely different ways. We don’t all react the same way.
“That’s the thing with me. I’m in a good place and me and Katya get on really well now.
“For me it’s something that happened in the past. We spoke about everything back then. We had a situation but everyone was supportive, so we got through it.”
'I never thought about quitting'
Today Neil denies he punched Seann in the aftermath of the fling, insists he brushed off poor-taste jokes by the stand-up comic that he was gay, and reveals his and Katya’s divorce has been held up by the pandemic.
The Sun on Sunday had revealed pictures of Seann and Katya passionately kissing earlier that week outside the Duke of York pub in central London.
They were the latest in a long line of dance duos to be struck by the “Strictly curse”.
The night before the story was published, the pair had performed a sexually charged paso doble live on Strictly, as both Neil — who was also on the show — and Seann’s girlfriend of five years, Rebecca Humphries, watched on from the wings, unaware of the kiss.
In grovelling apologies, Katya said: “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking. It was a one-off mistake after some drinks. I love my husband.”
Seann said it was a “mistake which I’m truly sorry for”.
While Neil stood by Katya, Rebecca dumped the comic and launched an Instagram tirade, revealing the kiss happened on her birthday when she was home alone.
She pointedly said: “It’s incredibly good of Sean(n) and Katya to apologise in the media. I have received nothing.”
Reflecting on the scandal, Neil says: “Strictly was great to both of us when it happened and we’re both in a good place now. I never thought about quitting. It’s a job I love doing.
'I’ve developed a thick skin'
“We both just got on and worked. We had a long time together and we are not together now. But we get on well and that’s the important thing.”
Incredibly, just two months after the scandal, Seann made a crude gag, claiming Neil was gay — something he has denied.
Introducing himself at the London gig, Seann said: “I’m the guy who kissed a gay man’s wife.” Reports suggested red-headed Neil had confronted Seann over it.
He says: “I’m ginger, anyone who is ginger is used to being called worse things. I’ve developed a thick skin. I didn’t try to punch him or anything. I don’t like confrontation or drama.”
In August last year, after months of trying to rescue their marriage, Neil and Katya announced their separation.
Neil says: “We’re still not divorced. It’s a thing we’re trying to sort out but we haven’t started the process yet.
“A lot of the places are not working because of the coronavirus. Everything is on hold. But we’re not in any rush.”
Neil met Russian-born Katya in 2008 when he was dancing in Blackpool and in desperate need of a professional partner.
He says: “My coach at the time, Richard, introduced us.
“I didn’t think about fancying her at first. She’s a pretty girl but for me it was always dancing first.
“She could speak English but not great. When we were in groups and people wanted to talk to her she would ask me to tell her what they had said. It’s funny because now she has more of an English accent than me.
“It was a few months before we got together. I think it was spending so much time together and we got to know each other.
“We didn’t squabble. We were passionate about what we were doing but always had a good partnership.
“People would ask us, ‘What’s best, being in a relationship with your dance partner or not?’ They have got their pluses and minuses.”
“We’re still not divorced. It’s a thing we’re trying to sort out but we haven’t started the process yet."
Neil Jones
Neil revealed last week how he was left homeless for a short time as a teenager.
He has now joined with the homeless charity Depaul UK, and earlier this month backed its #sleepbedless campaign by spend-ing the night on the balcony of his North London home.
Neil was 16 years old and studying in Finland’s capital, Helsinki, when he was forced on to the streets after running out of friends’ couches to crash on.
He eventually took shelter in the dance studio where he trained. But he kept it hidden from his family back in England for fear of worrying them.
Neil says: “At first I was like, ‘You know what, I am just going to sleep out on the bench’. But it got too cold. Then I walked all the way to the studio, which was in an industrial unit, got in the outside lift and lay down on a bench on one of the floors inside.
“I just thought, ‘I’m somewhere warm now’. Then I was like, ‘Wait, I don’t want them to see me sleeping outside the studio,’ and I could hear security walking around. I went to the toilet and fell asleep with my arms on top of the basin. I was there for a few nights.
“I was the type that didn’t want to worry anybody so I didn’t tell my mum.
“There was one person I was talking to and they knew a place I could go to.
“It was a charity similar to Depaul. It was simple — they had breakfast, dinner and a time you had to be in by.
“After about three weeks I decided I needed to go home. So I called up my mum and said, ‘It isn’t quite working here’.”
Neil moved into his own home in January and has spent most of lockdown by himself. As restrictions have eased, he has met up with Strictly friends.
He says: “I have been working on my new apartment and I want to get it all ready before I get busy. I’m used to being on my own and travelling on my own, so I actually enjoy it.
"I keep myself busy and have been doing Zooms with my friends. I met Giovanni Pernice at the park and went running.
“I’m not online dating, I’ve got no time for it. I’ve got Strictly and tours next year.”
Neil is confident Strictly will go ahead this year despite social distancing.
He says: “You can wear a mask on Strictly and I’m sure they’ll make them look great.
“We sometimes wear a mask during training because it helps with our stamina.
“Dancing isn’t all about touch. With my cha-cha I only touched Katya once. For most of it we were about two metres from each other.”
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He admits he is still in regular contact with her as the pair still share their dog, Crumble.
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He says: “Crumble has been with me the whole time in lockdown but if Katya said, ‘Can I see Crumble?’, no problem. I’m happy me and Katya are still friends.”
- Neil is supporting homeless charity DePaul UK
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