Strictly Come Dancing star Karen Hauer has spoken about her split from Kevin Clifton, with the dancer saying that they "belonged together".
The pair separated after three years of marriage in 2018, with Kevin – who left Strictly five years ago – subsequently beginning a relationship with celebrity partner Stacey Dooley the following year.
Karen, who wed Jordan Wyn-Jones in 2022 before divorcing two years later, spoke with Married at First Sight and Celebs Go Dating star Paul C Brunson on the We Need to Talk podcast, with the dancer discussing her separation from Clifton.
"This one hurt, because we belonged together," began the star, who is currently the longest-serving professional on the BBC series. "You wouldn't say each other's names without following the other person's name. We built stuff together.
"I felt that he distanced himself from me, but I was probably doing the same. I felt that, 'If you don't want me, I'll retreat – I'll give you your space.' It was one of those where we're both not talking about it [the emotional distance].
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"I was like, 'Do you want a divorce? Do you want to split up? I don't know what I want to do. What do you want to do? Do you know what you want? I don't know what I want. Are we broken up?'
"So it took a while actually, it took about a year... behind the scenes. In front of the scenes everything was normal," continued the dancer, who admitted that the pair had "fallen apart" and were "pretending" long before their eventual separation.
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"I didn't know what was happening in his mind – whether he wanted to be with me or not. I knew that I would've worked on it [our relationship] – I would've stayed. But at the same time, I couldn't be with someone who wasn't sure [about] whether they wanted to be with me or not."
Hauer, who has performed on Strictly since 2012, added that she "waited for a while" in order to give Clifton "space", adding that she was "waiting to be loved". After Clifton filed for divorce, Hauer admitted that she "didn't fight it", though she did note that they were both in a "tough place".
Strictly Come Dancing airs on Saturdays on BBC One, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
