Every time Strictly Come Dancing comes around, fans are always keen to see a new romance emerge. And this year, Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola have raised eyebrows with their sizzling chemistry on and off the dance floor.
Although the pair - who are both believed to be single - have remained coy about any rumours, hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have addressed the pair's close bond in a new chat on It Takes Two.
© BBC"I think with Ellie, she's just having so much fun," explained Tess. "And that's a part of it for her, because she's loving every second of the training room with Vito. They get on so well, so it's not like work for her! It's like, 'Yeah, give me another one, I'm loving this!'"
Claudia, meanwhile, touched upon Ellie's newfound confidence and described it as "magic to watch". She remarked: "[Ellie's] much more confident and he's done that for her."
Back in May, prior to joining Strictly, Ellie broke up with her boyfriend of five years, Reagan Pettman. Elsewhere, the professional dancer is said to be single and is keeping busy with his time on Strictly, training day in and day out to ensure he and Ellie bring their A-game to the ballroom each Saturday night.
© Guy LevyHELLO! spoke with body language expert, Noor Hibbert, the author of Sunday Times Bestseller You Only Live Once, about their bond – and how their chemistry could be down to amazing showmanship.
"Vito is a showman and Ellie is an actress, so both of them have the amazing skill of being able to create a story that emotionally connects in their dancing and have the skills which allows them to come across as though they may be in a relationship," the author explained.
"They clearly have a great connection and are comfortable putting on an intimate show, but since both are trained to do this in their own careers, I would say this dance is the work of two people who are very talented at crafting a great show."
She added: "The questioning from viewers of, 'Are they or aren't they' is part of the magic which their dancing creates - hence you have some people saying they may be faking it.
"This isn't to say that their friendship may not be developing into something further behind the scenes. But in relation to their sizzling Argentine Tango, I think they have done an excellent job of putting on a show.
"Ellie is an actress, therefore trained in making an act appear realistic to those watching. Over the weeks, through their dances, we have seen she has got more and more comfortable with him. This happens when a friendship grows.
"This is no different to the speculation about Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in 'A Star is Born'. People thought they were in an off-screen relationship due to the chemistry they created on screen. We may just be seeing the same with Vito and Ellie. Only time will tell if the Strictly curse has struck them."
