BBC Strictly's Zara McDermott blames partner Graziano for nasty injury ahead of first live show

Strictly Come Dancing is renowned for the pressure and hard work of the celebrity contestants, many of whom have little to no dancing experience when they join the battle for the glitterball trophy. And now the partner of Zara McDermott has spoken out about how it feels when you've been in the bottom two, shining a light on how difficult it can be to bounce back.

Strictly Come Dancing fans were shocked after contestant Zara McDermott was caught out treating a foot callus. Boyfriend and reality star Sam Thompson, shared a video clip on Instagram of his partner using an electric callus remover on the bed.

Reality star Sam Thompson has slammed his girlfriend Zara McDermott as a 'terrible dancer' as she made her live Strictly Come Dancing debut.

Strictly Come Dancing star Zara McDermott has said that she is "struggling" to spend time with her boyfriend, Sam Thompson, as a result of her schedule for the programme.The former Love Island star, who is dancing with Strictly pro Graziano Di Prima, has admitted that they are training for 11 hours a day as they look to progress through the competition. She also confessed that due to Sam having a radio show in the evenings, when she finally gets home from rehearsals, she is left to practise either on her own or with their cats. Speaking to the Daily Mail, the 26 year old said: "Sam does his radio show every evening, so when I come home from training, he's at work so I rehearse on my own or use one of the cats.

Zara McDermott's second Strictly Come Dancing performance will be particularly special for the ex-Love Islander, with the dance having a sweet link to her grandparents.The ex-Love Islander, 26, is competing on this year's series of the BBC One show with professional dancer Graziano Di Prima, 29, with the duo proving to be a perfect match on the dance floor. Zara performed the quickstep with Graziano on Saturday's show and her mum Karen has revealed that the quickstep has a special link to her parents - Zara's grandparents - who would dance the quickstep together when they were dating.

Strictly Come Dancing star Nancy Xu has issued an update to concerned fans after she suffered an unexpected injury during the first live show last weekend. The professional dancer, who first joined the Strictly family in July 2019, was performing her first dance with celebrity partner Les Dennis when an unfortunate accident saw her bleeding by the time the dance was completed.

Zara McDermott and her partner Graziano Di Prima are “potential winners” of Strictly Come Dancing thanks to their “great rapport”, a body language expert said. The 26 year old ex-Love Island star and the 29 year old pro dancer have a lot of respect for each other and shared “tactile moments” during their debut routine on Saturday, Darren Stanton said. Earlier this week, OK! revealed how Zara was putting her all into winning Strictly - even if it meant spending time apart from boyfriend Sam Thompson.

Strictly Come Dancing stars Ellie Leach, Graziano De Prima and Vito Coppola were seen laughing and joking around as they left studios in London.The Strictly stars had been filming for the spin-off show It Takes Two on Wednesday, 27 September when Italian professional dancers Graziano, 29, and Vito, 31, could be seen sharing a laugh. At one point Graziano got down on one knee and held out a bunch of flowers to Vito in a heartwarming moment.

Strictly Come Dancing was back on our screens for the first live show of the series on Saturday evening, during which 15 hopeful celebs took to the floor with their professional partners.

The stars of Strictly Come Dancing have reportedly been left 'hysterical' in fears that the TV studio is 'haunted' after the first live show. Some of the show's biggest dancing stars including Dianne Buswell, Katya Jones, Nadiya Bychkova and Nancy Xu are reported to have experienced weird goings-on. Strictly is filmed at Elstree Studios in London, but the judges and dancers are said to have been left feeling uneasy after hearing strange noises and having odd experiences that are unexplainable.

Adam Thomas has seen his odds of winning Strictly Come Dancing dramatically plummet, just as viewers enjoy the first live show of the 2023 series.The ex-Emmerdale actor, 35, took to the iconic Strictly dance floor on Saturday night alongside professional dance partner Luba Mushtuk for the first time, but it looks like he really needs to impress viewers at home if he wants to bag the Glitterball trophy. In odds provided by William Hill to the Express, Adam and Luba's odds of winning the show have dropped, along with Zara McDermott, whose chances of being crowned the winner have also been slashed.

Sam Thompson has made the effort to "really get to know" his girlfriend's Strictly Come Dancing partner. Zara McDermott, who Sam has been dating since 2019, is taking part in this year's BBC dancing competition. Ahead of the live shows, TV personality and Made in Chelsea star, Sam wanted to get to Zara's partner professional Graziano Di Prima and his wife, Giada Lini.

Strictly Come Dancing contestant Amanda Abbington has hit back following claims she nearly quit the show due to alleged rows with her professional partner Giovanni Pernice. The actress posted a video on Instagram on Saturday morning, hours before the live show is due to air on BBC One.

Zara McDermott has spent 10 hours a day in the rehearsal studio ahead of her Strictly Come Dancing debut.The 26-year-old presenter and documentary maker will be taking to the dance floor for the first time tonight on the BBC. Despite being in the capable hands of her partner, Graziano Di Prima, Zara's mum has said that she will be "nervous" to be dancing the cha cha to Crush by Jennifer Paige.

This year's Strictly Come Dancing celebrities are in a WhatsApp chat together, revealed Zara McDermott's mum. Zara, who first found fame on Love Island, has put her dancing shoes on as she will be taking part in the 21st series of BBC competition.The 26-year-old, who is now a presenter and documentary maker, has been paired with Graziano Di Prima and will do the cha cha to Crush by Jennifer Paige on the first live show tonight (Saturday, September 23).

In the world of celebrity romance, few couples have faced the public eye with the resilience of Zara McDermott and Sam Thompson. From reality TV fame to a heartfelt reconciliation, this duo has shown that love can weather even the stormiest of setbacks. As Zara takes centre stage on Strictly Come Dancing, Sam stands as her biggest cheerleader.

The launch show last weekend was just a taster of what's to come as you could say that Strictly Come Dancing officially begins tonight. Last Saturday (September 16), fans of the BBC One dance contest got to see which celebrities had been paired with which professional dancer before their journey to the Glitterball trophy - hopefully - got started.

Sam Thompson has said he is "so proud" of his girlfriend Zara McDermott following her Strictly Come Dancing debut on Saturday. The former Made in Chelsea star, 31, took to his Instagram Stories to share his excitement with fans as the launch show for the 2023 series aired, featuring ex-Love Islander Zara, 26, who will be competing for the Glitterball trophy. Sam, who has been dating Zara since May 2019, hosted a viewing party at his home and cheered his girlfriend on, as it was revealed that she's been partnered with Graziano Di Prima.

Strictly Come Dancing 2023 launched last night, Saturday 16 September, with a packed evening of show-stopping routines. Viewers also had the first opportunity to meet this year's celeb contestants - including Love Island star turned documentary-maker Zara McDermott who revealed she's been paired with professional dancer Graziano Di Prima. And in a new interview with The Sun's Fabulous Magazine, Zara has opened up about the Strictly experience and the supposed 'curse'.

The long-awaited moment finally arrived when Strictly Come Dancing fans found out who their favourite celebs were paired with as they battled it out on the dance floor in the opening show of the series. As well as revealing who the celebrities are paired with, Strictly opened with a dramatic performance from the fabulous professional dancers, who also performed alongside the Judges in an eye-catching routine, like never before seen on the show.The first dancing duo to be revealed was Amanda Abbington who was paired with her professional dancing partner Giovanni Pernice.