I deeply regret Strictly kiss, says Walsh
SEANN Walsh has said he “deeply” regrets his kiss with Strictly partner Katya Jones — but insisted he is not the person he is being portrayed as.
The comedian and professional dancer Jones have been at the centre of controversy after The Sun published pictures of them locking lips on a night out, despite both being involved in relationships.
The pair apologised in separate statements on social media and on Wednesday appeared together on Strictly spin-off show It Takes Two to address the scrutiny.
Walsh (32) said: “I think that, obviously I’m sorry for the hurt that I’ve caused.
“We were getting on well, we were having fun.
“We had a couple of drinks and made a huge mistake and I regret it deeply.”
Earlier this week the standup comic was publicly dumped by his long-term partner Rebecca Humphries, who added in a withering statement that he had called her “psycho/nuts/mental” when she suspected something was going on.
He told It Takes Two host Zoe Ball: “I think first of all I would rather not be having to address this publicly, but I feel like I have to. I made a mistake, which I’m very sorry for — sorry for the hurt that I’ve caused.
“You never think about the extent of the damage that you’re going to do, in a moment of, you know the mistake that you’ve made. I’m not perfect, far from it. Our relationship wasn’t perfect.
“That doesn’t mean I wanted it to end the way it finally did, and I’m very sorry for that.”
He added: “I feel it’s also important for me to say that the people that know me the most, that love me, they know that I am not the person I’m being portrayed as.
“I’m still sorry for what I did, but it’s very important for me to get that out there.”
Jones (29) is married to fellow Strictly dancer Neil Jones and in the aftermath of the pictures being published she said they were “very happy” and that the incident was not a reflection on their relationship.
She told Ball: “Yes obviously I apologise, and I can’t apologise enough to everyone who it hurt and involved. But, the main thing, me and Neil are absolutely fine and that’s what matters to me the most right now and focusing on my job and doing it as professionally as I can.”
Earlier, head judge Shirley Ballas said she will be judging only the dancing this weekend as she attempted to sidestep questions about Walsh and Jones on ITV’s This Morning.
Asked about her reaction to seeing the Sun’s pictures of the night out, she said: “I’m not a newspaper reader, so I’m probably always the last to know any information that’s going on, but I just think people get on with their job.
“I’m there to judge a competition which is about dancing, I’m not there to judge anybody’s private life.”