‘Strictly Come Dancing’ judge Craig Revel Horwood has pointed the finger of blame in Katya Jones’ direction after her kiss with dance partner Seann Walsh.
The long-standing panellist has said the pro dancer “should not have allowed” their kiss to happen, likening the situation to when a teacher snogs their student.
Addressing the backlash Seann and Katya received in the wake of their public kiss during a night out, Craig told the ‘Loose Women’ on Wednesday: “I’ll put the ball in Katya’s court, she should not have allowed it to happen.
“One, she’s married, two, he’s in a relationship that is no longer. Talking as Craig Revel Horwood personally – this is not the view of the BBC – it’s a teacher snogging the student, isn’t it?”
He continued: “I thought they were brave to come back on to the show and do their dance of shame. It has to be done. If you snog someone at the Christmas party that you shouldn’t have, like your boss, but you still want the job, you still have to turn up on Monday. Even if there are imprints on the photocopy machine.
“You have to face the music and dance, and they did, and I’m glad they did. They are there to be professional, let’s not forget they are being paid to do the job – both of them.”
Craig’s comments followed those made by ‘Strictly’ professional Anton Du Beke, who claimed Seann and Katya were overmarked for their first post-kiss dance on Saturday.
He said of their Charleston: “What I do believe is that they were kindly marked on the night – they got higher marks than I thought the dance deserved.
“It did have a great performance value, Katya’s choreography is always brilliant. But I thought technically it wasn’t there.”
He added: “That’s just my opinion but I think the audience at home have a bigger role to play this year than ever before.”
Anton previously described the controversial kiss between Seann and Katya as “disappointing on many levels”, adding he didn’t have any sympathy for them over the backlash they faced.
Seann and Katya will return to the ‘Strictly’ floor once again this weekend, where they will take on a Quickstep to ‘Lightning Bolt’ by Jake Bugg.
‘Strictly Come Dancing’ continues on Saturday at 6.45pm on BBC One, while ‘Loose Women’ airs weekdays at 12.30pm on ITV.