There Are Lessons We Can All Learn From That Strictly Scandal

Is a kiss just a kiss? And is it ever OK to call someone a psycho? Rhiannon Evans examines the Strictly scandal that sparked nationwide debate.

- Rhiannon Evans

THINK OF Strictly Come Dancing, and colour, sparkle and oak-stain fake tans come to mind. But last week, everything turned grey as that Seann Walsh story moved from a drunken kiss to a murky debate on sexual politics – and for some, self-reflection about our own relationships.

Comedian Seann and his dance partner, Katya Jones, were caught kissing outside a pub – and days later the pictures were everywhere. Seann (in a five-year relationship with actor Rebecca Humphries) and Katya (married to fellow Strictly dancer Neil) publicly apologised for what they said was a drunken mistake. But juicy gossip turned into a national hot topic when Rebecca tweeted that she’d left Seann (taking their pet cat). On the night of the kiss – her birthday – she’d expressed concern about something going on. ‘He aggressively, and repeatedly, called me a psycho/nuts/mental,’ she wrote. ‘As he has done countless times through our relationship when I’ve questioned his inappropriate, hurtful behaviour.’