Rose Ayling-Ellis and Giovanni Pernice formed an unbreakable bond during their time on Strictly Come Dancing last year. Their friendship proved to be a successful one, with the former EastEnders star becoming the first deaf contestant to appear on the BBC show.
Almost 12 months on from their remarkable victory, the 28-year-old actress spoke of their special connection and what they learnt from each other. "I started off finding dancing very confusing," she told The Telegraph.
WATCH: Giovanni Pernice has paid the sweetest tribute to Rose Ayling-Ellis
"It was a strange new skill. But Giovanni was so good. He listened and learnt a lot from me. We learnt very quickly that, if we were together, I could follow him."
On learning how to dance with one another, she added: "If he left me alone, it was much harder for me to be on time. He had to arrange the choreography so that I could see him all the time. That took time.
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"If you look at week one, you can see he wasn’t always in my line of sight, but by the end, he always was. It was a wonderful experience. It gave me courage."
The past year has been quite the journey for Rose, who made history by becoming the first deaf contestant to appear on - and win - Strictly. The pair won many awards and high praise following their stint.
However, she also recently split up with her boyfriend of seven years, Sam Arnold. They reportedly parted ways due to Rose's busy schedule. Speaking about their split, Rose said: "I felt, from the start, like I had known him for a very, very long time… if that’s part of what 'love at first sight' can mean?"
Probed further, the actress shut down any attempt to discuss her private life because "If I do that then I can't switch off when I go home.
"I'd rather talk about my career, because I am really proud of it. I’m proud of the hard work and I’m so glad I am deaf, because it gives me a purpose. I want to build the ladder and climb up it and leave it behind me for others to follow."
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