Pete Wicks has shut down rumours of a romance between him and his Strictly Come Dancing partner Jowita Przystal.
The former TOWIE star, 36, and the professional dancer, 30, have found themselves engulfed by speculation they have fallen for each other for the past few weeks amid their intense rehearsals.
But during a joint appearance on This Morning on Tuesday, Pete set the record straight, just days after he finally confirmed his romance with Maura Higgins.
Host Alison Hammond began their interview, by asking: ‘Do you actually listen to the judges or are you just in your own little world?’
Pete admitted: ‘I’m just in my own little world, we’re in a bit of a bubble when we dance!’ causing Alison to jump to the opportunity to probe them about their rumoured relationship, cheekily asking: ‘Is it a love bubble?’
Pete Wicks has shut down rumours of a romance between him and his Strictly Come Dancing partner Jowita Przystal
The former TOWIE star, 36, and the professional dancer, 30, h ave found themselves engulfed by speculation they have fallen for each other for the past few weeks amid their intense rehearsals
But during a joint appearance on This Morning on Tuesday, Pete set the record straight, just days after he finally confirmed his romance with Maura Higgins (pictured with Maura)
However, Pete insisted: ‘It’s not a love bubble unfortunately…’ before poking fun at Alison, saying: ‘I mean you came in early, that was about 30 seconds before you went in with it!’
Alison laughed and confessed: ‘I was straight in there!’ as Pete continued: ‘You were straight in there! No, it’s not a love bubble, we have great chemistry because we’ve become such good friends.’
Gesturing to Jowita, he gushed: ‘She’s one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, genuinely, not just in the dancing side of things but outside of that and I think that helps us with the whole dancing thing.’
Alison asked if the pair found the constant speculation about the nature of their relationship tiresome, to which Pete admitted: ‘Yeah, it’s always the same, I’m used to it.
‘Ten years that’s all anyone ever interested in that side of stuff… but we don’t really listen to that stuff.’
Dermot O’Leary was quick to defend his co-host, explaining that Pete’s best friend Sam Thompson had been spreading rumours.
He insisted: ‘The thing is we’re not like that, it’s not our fault it’s Sam’s fault! Sam comes on and is like, “Oh no he’s totally in love!” and is bouncing off the walls.’
Pete joked: ‘I blame Sam for most things that happen in my life, so there’s no surprise there either. But no, it’s not like that, we’ve become such good friends.’
Host Alison Hammond jumped to the opportunity to probe them about the rumours, however Pete insisted: ‘It’s not a love bubble, we have great chemistry because we’ve become such good friends’
Gesturing to Jowita, he gushed: ‘She’s one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, genuinely, not just in the dancing side of things but outside of that and I think that helps us with the whole dancing thing’
Alison asked if the pair found the constant speculation about the nature of their relationship tiresome, to which Pete admitted: ‘Yeah, it’s always the same, I’m used to it’
Pete and Jowita were thought to have become close during the show, with reports saying they had hit it off ‘immediately’ and ‘set tongues wagging’ on the show among the cast and crew (pictured on show)
Pete and Jowita were thought to have become close during the show, with reports saying they had hit it off ‘immediately’ and ‘set tongues wagging’ on the show among the cast and crew.
However, this week it was confirmed that Pete has found love with fellow reality star Maura, 33, with the pair being pictured kissing during a date at the weekend.
The Love Islander and the Strictly star were first linked back in August, but didn’t confirm their relationship until this week.
Maura broke her silence on the rumours on Tuesday, while appearing on the We Need To Talk podcast with Paul Brunson.
When Paul asked Maura if she and Pete ‘were a thing’, Maura told the host: ‘We just get on very, very well. I adore him, he’s an amazing person.
‘Do you know what’s so weird? We met very soon after me coming off Love Island and we just instantly clicked.
‘Our humour is the same. It’s like that sick, dark humour. It’s very abusive. We abuse each other. Very nasty, it’s hilarious.’
The pair have kept their romance on the downlow, sharing a tender moment in the corner at the Pride Of Britain after-party last week.
However, this week it was confirmed that Pete has found love with fellow reality star Maura, 33, with the pair being pictured kissing during a date at the weekend (pictured this month)
Maura was seen planting a kiss on Pete’s nose before the pair were spotted canoodling at the Grosvenor House Hotel.
A day earlier, Pete showed off his impressive Strictly moves as he danced with Maura in a recent TikTok video.
The couple were previously seen together enjoying a night out at The Ship in Wandsworth alongside his Strictly friends.
An onlooker exclusively told MailOnline that the pair were inseparable, whispering in each other’s ears and even interlocking legs as they enjoyed a drink alongside Wynne Evans, Tom Dean and Jamie Borthwick.
The eyewitness shared: ‘They were all over each other, I was surprised to see them looking so close because I thought he had real chemistry with Jowita.
‘At one point they were basically straddling each other and didn’t seem to care at all that people could see them.
‘You’d think Pete would be more concerned about Tom given he’d just been given the boot on Strictly but he only had eyes for Maura all night!’
The situation became even more complicated as Maura baffled fans while looking cosy with Strictly star Kai Widdrington during the Pride Of Britain Awards.
Kai, 29, and Maura looked very close after the ceremony, with the pro dancer tightly wrapping his arms around the presenter.
At one point, Kai appeared to twirl Maura before heading into a different room together.
Kai is believed to be single at present following his split from fellow professional Nadiya Bychkova.
A Strictly source told Mailonline the latest romance twists will do little to dampen the show’s reputation for its stars hooking up.
The insider said: ‘Kai and Maura getting close while she’s still got feelings for Pete, who is now infatuated with Jowita , just sums up Strictly right now.
‘It’s a never-ending conveyor belt of relationships and flings, which shows no sign of ending.’