Molly Rainford has opened up about the beginnings of her relationship with former Strictly Come Dancing co-star Tyler West.
The pair appeared on the 2022 season of the BBC ballroom show and surprised fans by getting together earlier this year following the Strictly arena tour.
In a new interview with Fabulous magazine, Molly – who recently joined the cast of EastEnders – revealed how their fellow Strictly stars were willing them to get together.
“I suppose it developed towards the end of the tour because we’d spent so much time together and we were really good friends,” she said.
“The tour was so much fun. We were just doing everything together and it just progressed from there really.”
Molly continued: “He was like, ‘Do you think when we get back, we could go on a date?’ and I was like, ‘Yeah, alright!’ I was totally up for it.
“Everyone on Strictly was so excited for us. They kind of wanted it to happen [all the way through the show] and we were like, ‘No, we are trying to be professional’.”
During their stint on Strictly last year, Tyler was paired with pro dancer Dianne Buswell, while Molly was partnered with professional Carlos Gu.
Tyler, who is a DJ on Kiss FM, finished in eighth place, while Molly made it all the way to the final, which saw wildlife cameraman Hamza Yassin being crowned winner.
The couple first teased that things had turned romantic between them in a TikTok video, which riffed off a famous Friends moment.
Tyler recently shared his pride at seeing Molly in EastEnders, where she is playing the role of Anna Knight, who is the daughter of the recently returned-from-the-dead Cindy Beale.
“I am well excited. I am like her biggest fan. She makes my heart smile with it all,” he told ITV’s Lorraine.
“I am so proud of her and she deserves it and I feel like it’s a real big moment.”