Former Strictly Come Dancing contestant Ricky Whittle has made explosive allegations against BBC bosses, claiming they deliberately fabricated a romance between him and his professional dance partner nearly two decades ago.
The 'Stitched Up' Allegations
Ricky Whittle, the 45-year-old actor best known for Hollyoaks, has stated that the corporation 'totally stitched me up' during his time on the show in 2009. He finished as the runner-up to sports presenter Chris Hollins, but now claims his journey was marred by production manipulation.
Whittle alleges that the BBC crafted a narrative portraying him and his Australian dance partner, Natalie Lowe, as the show's 'romantic couple'. He told the Daily Mail that producers 'manipulated interviews in the VTs' shown during the programme.
'I remember them asking me questions about Natalie like, 'Was seeing her the best part of your day?' or me saying she was amazing, and they cut it together with soft, beautiful music in the background,' Whittle recounted. 'They knew what they were doing. Other couples were the ones who argued, but Natalie and I were the romantic couple.'
The Real-Life Relationship Fallout
At the time the show aired, Whittle was in a relationship with actress Carly Stenson, who played Steph Cunningham in Hollyoaks. The 43-year-old was initially supportive, but their relationship reportedly ended during the early stages of the competition.
This split was widely attributed to rumours of Whittle's growing closeness to his dance partner, Natalie Lowe, who later left Strictly in 2017. The allegations shed new light on the powerful influence of the so-called 'Strictly curse'.
When approached for comment by the Mirror online, the BBC declined to respond to Whittle's claims.
Life After Strictly Come Dancing
Since his stint on the iconic dance competition, Ricky Whittle moved to the United States in 2012. He now resides in Los Angeles and has built a successful acting career, with appearances in Netflix's Nappily Ever After and the thriller film Land Of The Bad.
Meanwhile, his ex-girlfriend Carly Stenson found love with fellow actor Danny Mac, who played Mark 'Dodger' Savage. The couple married in 2017 and now share two children: a daughter named Skye Bella, born in 2021, and a son named Beauie Mac, born this year.
Interestingly, Danny Mac also appeared on Strictly in 2016. Carly revealed she wasn't concerned about history repeating itself, telling The Sun that Danny had asked for her permission before joining the show. 'He said to me 'Do you want me to do it? If you don't want me to do it I won't' and I said 'Are you kidding? Do it!'' she explained.
She added, 'I'm not really worried, it wasn't that [the Ricky situation] as that was so long ago. He just knows we're both very private so he was like 'This is going to catapult us a little bit' so I was like 'No babe, do it'.'
