Sophie Ellis-Bextor: Being on Strictly took a toll on my marriage

3 October 2021

Sophie Ellis-Bextor says 'Strictly Come Dancing' took a toll on her marriage.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor

The 'Murder On The Dancefloor' hitmaker was partnered with Brendan Cole on the BBC One show in 2013, but she admits her husband Richard Jones "struggled" with her involvement in the show.

Writing in her book, she said: "Richard started to struggle with my involvement from the launch show onwards. It was so hard for him that I can remember wondering if they’d ever had a contestant walk away from the show before they’d even danced their first dance.

"The physical closeness was something I struggled with throughout, but, by the end, a lot of things I had thought were odd – like the ‘couples’ holding hands or gripping on to each other for the results show – I was used to and it seemed as if, by doing those things, I had crossed another Strictly hurdle."

Sophie says Richard would keep checking up on her all the time and explained how he felt she might "leave their family behind" - but she couldn't give the reassurance he needed because she was so tired.

In an extract from her autobiography Spinning Plates, as shared with the Mail on Sunday, she added: "Supporting me in all that I do usually came so easily to him, but with Strictly I think he was just waiting for it to end. He’d message me all day when I was rehearsing, extra keen to know my schedule.

"We would argue when I was home about how distracted I was and about whether I’d get through to the next week. He just felt as if I might slip into a new life that left our family behind.

"I had no such desire, but was too spent at the end of the day to give the reassurance he needed. I think the only real reassurance could come with the show finishing."