Kevin Clifton isn't holding his opinions back about his Strictly Come Dancing co-star AJ Pritchard, suggesting that the fellow professional dancer tried to steal Stacey Dooley for himself last year.

Appearing on a one-off Strictly special, which will air on Saturday night, Kevin speaks about the process of the dancers and contestants testing their compatibility with a 'speed dance'.

The dance features the celebrities and professionals dance briefly with each other, before they're placed in their various partnerships.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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According to The Sun, Kevin claims he was ‘going for it’ with Stacey while they were dancing in a salsa circle, but AJ later swooped in and tried to pull Stacey away for a one-on-one talk.

"Last year with Stacey in the salsa circle, I was going for it… overdoing it," Kevin says.

"At one point, we were on a coffee break and AJ interrupted us in the middle of us talking and took her away," he added. "He wanted to get to know her and see what she was about."

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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"I was like, “It’s not Love Island mate!”‘ Kevin managed to fend off AJ's advances and he was picked to be Stacey's partner for last years show.

The duo went on to win the Glitterball trophy, before confirming their romance three months later following Stacey's split from ex-boyfriend Sam Tucknott.

The pair insist on remaining tight-lipped about their private life.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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In an interview with The Guardian, Stacey said:

"Kev and I agreed not to go into too much detail about our private lives because you can’t really indulge that and then ask for privacy. What I am happy to say is Kev’s amazing. I’m happy, life happens. I’ve got an amazing career and I’m very lucky."

Kevin is partnered with Anneka Rice on this year's Strictly, but was recently forced to deny claims that he’s "fuming" with the pairing and insisted he’s having a "wicked time" with Anneka in rehearsals.

Feature image: Instagram/@strictlycomesaffron/@aj_pritchard.fans