Ellie Leach looked like a golden goddess for her reunion alongside professional partner and fellow 2023 champion Vito Coppola this week as they geared up for the start of the Strictly Come Dancing live tour. The winners of the series looked elated to be back in each other's arms as they posed for official photographs at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham ahead of the first live show on Friday.
In true Strictly style, Ellie's dress was drenched in glitter and sparkle with a patterned bodice and slim straps. The skirt, meanwhile, had a triangular hem and featured delicate hanging sequins. The bodice also had a flattering gold belt around the middle, cinching the silhouette beautifully.
Vito was no less sparkling, of course. The Italian professional dancer donned a gold-flecked black ballroom shirt buttoned up to the neck, paired with smart trousers and shoes.
© Eamonn M. McCormackThe pair won the show back in early December, beating out competition from Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin and Bobby Brazer and Dianne Buswell and, although they've been enjoying some much-needed downtime following the 15-week run of the BBC Latin and Ballroom show, in recent days they have been working solidly in the studio in preparation for the tour.
Speaking to HELLO! exclusively during their rehearsals for the tour, the soap actress explained how Strictly had changed her for the better.
Ellie, 22, said: "I'm not scared any more. Pushing myself out of my comfort zone has done me the world of good. I'm really proud of myself for that. "My mum likes to use the word 'blossomed'. They can see I've become a more positive person."
But in addition to their incredible dance routines and chemistry on the dancefloor, the pair have made headlines for their chemistry away from the ballroom.
Vito addressed this speculation in a press conference with HELLO! and other reporters, stating they ignore the rumours: "We are in the rehearsals all day, we have so many things to think about, choreography.
"We have to have the time to eat, we nap a little bit, then we go home and we eat and sleep because we rehearse again so we really are so focused. All of this beautiful experience, words cannot describe how we are enjoying every single rehearsal, every single second of this amazing experience."
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© Jacob King - PA ImagesWha'ts more, appearing on This Morning earlier this month, Ellie and Vito denied they were anything more than great friends. "We have a great, great relationship," the professional dancer revealed whilst putting his arm around his dance partner.
"We made a promise…" he continued, before Ellie then interjected: "Weeks ago, we said, if we make it to the final, 'Why don't we get a tattoo? But it was just a joke, we didn't expect to get there."
© BBCVito added: "Then we made it to the final, and thought we now have to keep the promise. In the end we decided to do a bee with the body of an aubergine because a bee is a Brazilian insect. But that is a symbol of our bond."
