Coleen: I won’t take a cha-cha chance with the Strictly curse
COLEEN Rooney has turned down a lucrative offer to star on Strictly Come Dancing – because producers say she fears the show’s ‘curse’ that has ended the relationships of so many contestants.
The 32-year-old’s marriage to former England footballer Wayne came under the spotlight last year after he was arrested for drink-driving while behind the wheel of another woman’s car. Coleen and the couple’s children were on holiday at the time.
Sources close to the BBC show say mother-of-four Coleen was offered a significant financial package to appear on the programme, but that footballers and their wives were wary of getting involved following Louise Redknapp’s appearance in 2016. She split from husband Jamie just months later and the pair are now divorced.
A member of the Strictly production staff said: ‘They [Coleen’s advisers] decided it wasn’t viable. They could foresee all of the speculation, jibes and jokes about the “Curse of Strictly” and didn’t think it was worth it.
‘People are still reticent about taking part because of the Redknapps’ split.’ The source said Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie had also turned down offers to appear on the show, which is regularly watched by more than ten million viewers.
A source close to Coleen confirmed that she had turned down a place on Strictly, saying: ‘She didn’t want to do it and it’s not the first time she has been asked.’