Strictly Come Dancing professional Katya Jones has praised former partner Wynne Evans as "incredible", despite his recent involvement in controversy.
Welsh opera star Wynne Evans, 53, allegedly sent a sex toy to fellow Strictly participant Jamie Borthwick, 30, in what was purported to be a humorous gesture. The incident reportedly occurred backstage during the Strictly live tour, and The Mirror claims the provocative item was even flaunted behind the scenes.
Apparently, a video of the incident made its way into the Strictly Come Dancing WhatsApp group, which includes celebrities from the show. A source informed: "As soon as BBC executives were made aware of this shocking and immature footage being shared they formally addressed the issue and reminded the pair they had to act professionally."
As per The Sun, EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick and Wynne Evans have been described as behaving "extremely immaturely" following the delivery of the infamous item to the reception of Birmingham's Utilita Arena. They reported: "Bosses were horrified and shocked, hoping to nip the issue in the bud, unaware the video had been shared more widely."
The contentious video is believed to have been recorded not long after Wynne made an inappropriate comment directed at host Janette Manrara during the photocall for the Strictly tour. His association with the show was terminated shortly thereafter, reports Wales Online.
Following the occurrence, Wynne expressed regret for any "pain" caused by his "inappropriate language" and has since taken a hiatus from his regular spot on BBC Radio Wales. According to reports by The Mirror, he has also been cut from the GoCompare advertising campaign.
Katya, aged 35, who partnered with Wynne for nine weeks on Strictly Come Dancing last year, has opened up about her sentiments regarding the singer. Chatting with The Sun's Fabulous magazine, she expressed: "I can only obviously speak from my personal experience, but I thought Wynne was incredible.
"We spent a huge amount of time together and we had a brilliant partnership. We got on like a house on fire."
Despite rumours of tension between Wynne and Katya sparked by a high-five mishap during the show, which saw Katya apparently shunning Wynne's gesture of camaraderie, the professional dancer has clarified that their perceived frosty relations were down to an "inside joke" gone wrong, not helping matters as Wynne dealt with negative public attention.
Katya reassured fans concerned about her wellbeing, stressing her fond memories of their collaboration. She added: "Wynne has never made me feel uncomfortable in any way. We've had the most incredible time together, which no one can take away from us.
"I look back fondly on it. I carried on with the tour without him, but it was a shame because we were having a fabulous time and the crowd loved him."
Following his controversial removal from the Strictly tour, Wynne is said to be considering legal steps to seek "recompense". After the fallout, he took to social media with a rare update, boasting a new personal record cycling metric, coupled with hashtags suggestive of overcoming adversity: "#truthwins #wynners."
