Ellie Leach has vowed to "put her all" into 'Strictly Come Dancing' after her boyfriend cheated on her.
Ellie Leach split with her boyfriend earlier this year when he was unfaithful
The 22-year-old actress split from dancer Reagan Pettman in July after five years of dating and while she admitted it was "upsetting" that he had been unfaithful, she now sees it as the "perfect time" to concentrate on her new challenge.
She told The Sunday Mirror newspaper: "Being cheated on was upsetting, but now’s the perfect time to put my all into 'Strictly' and give that 500 percent."
The former 'Coronation Street' star - who left her long-running role as Faye Windass on the ITV1 soap opera earlier this year after more than a decade on the cobbles - is competing alongside professional Vito Coppola, 31, on the BBC Latin and ballroom competition and went on to add that she hopes that taking part in the show will help improve her self-esteem.
She said: "Self-confidence is something I’ve always struggled with. As an actor, people don’t see that – they think you’re this confident person and you can do anything. I’m hoping Strictly will bring that for me, push me and make me realise I’m capable of things."
Ellie also noted that despite being just two weeks into the competition, she has already "learned so much" from her professional partner and is trying to remember to "praise" herself no matter how tough rehearsals get.
She added: "Vito has taught me so much already. He tells me, ‘It’s a competition with yourself. If you’re tired, fight it, if you’re stressed, fight it’. I also don’t praise myself enough, I just focus on the wrong. But then he’ll say to me, ‘Yeah, but you just did that."