STRICTLY SHOCK

Kevin waltzes off after 7 years

PROFESSIONAL Kevin Clifton has quit Strictly Come Dancing just 14 months after winning the hit show’s Glitterball Trophy with his now girlfriend Stacey Dooley.

The dancer, 37 – who also won the latest Christmas special with Debbie McGee – is rumoured to have been unhappy since his early exit with Anneka Rice in the last series.

Yesterday he announced he wanted to pursue other projects, including writing a TV drama about the ballroom world. He said: “The past seven years [on Strictly] have been some of the most wonderful of my life.

“Since first being called ‘Kevin from Grimsby’ by Sir Bruce Forsyth in 2013, I have experienced the highs of five finals, winning a Guinness World Record on It Takes Two, the Strictly Arena tour Glitterball, and the ultimate of winning the 2018 series with Stacey.

“After finishing the last series with the Children In Need trophy and the Christmas Special, I want to leave on a high and have decided the time has come to move on and focus on other areas of my life and career. I want to thank all of the pros as well as all of my celebrity partners.”

The latter include Good Morning Britain presenter Susanna Reid, 49, and singer Louise Redknapp, 45 – whose marriages fell apart after they were paired with Kevin. He was forced to deny flings with them.

Then his marriage to third wife Karen Hauer – also a Strictly professional – ended in March 2018.

He started dating TV presenter Stacey, 32, after they won Strictly at the end of that year.

She said yesterday: “Kevin, I am so proud of you. What you have achieved on that show is remarkable and undeniable.You are the most successful pro Strictly’s ever had because you work so hard.”

A Strictly spokesman said: “He will be hugely missed.”

Last week Kevin told Katie Piper’s Extraordinary People podcast: “I don’t see myself doing this when I’m 40. I want to write a TV drama about the ballroom competition world. It will be about some of the real stories that go on.”