Bad news for Strictly Come Dancing fans - original professional dancer Brendan Cole has announced he's leaving the show
Strictly fans, brace yourselves... Brendan Cole has been kicked off the show.
Brendan, who has been a professional dancer on the show since its very first episode, revealed to Lorraine this morning that he will not be returning to the show for this year's series.
However, it has not been an unanimous decision - as the 41-year-old has revealed that he had not had any say in the matter
**GALLERY: **11 Strictly Come Dancing affairs that gave us the shock of our lives...
11 Strictly Come Dancing affairs that gave us the shock of our lives SLIDER with cover pic
1 of 11Strictly
2 of 111. Did Natasha Kaplinsky and Brendan Cole have a Strictly affair?
Strictly's Camilla Dallerup revealed she suffered a 'mini death' when her fiancé Brendan Cole reportedly left her in 2004 for his Strictly dance partner Natasha Kaplinsky. Natasha and Brendan never confirmed they were romantically involved. Natasha said: "There was chemistry, of course, and I certainly fell in love with dancing, but I did not fall in love with Brendan."The pair have since married other people, whilst Camilla married former Hollyoaks star Kevin Sacre in 2010.
3 of 112. Joe Calzaghe and Kristina Rihanoff: Strictly scandal turns fairy tale
After splitting with his girlfriend of five years, Jo-Emma Larvin, just one week into his stint on Stricly in 2009, boxer Joe Calzaghe and professional partner Kristina Rihanoff soon embarked on a romance - splitting in 2013 after four years together.
4 of 113. Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff Strictly scandal turned into true love
Following his 2013 stint on the show, rugby star Ben Cohen revealed he'd split from wife of 11-years Abby. He was then forced to deny he was romantically involved with former partner Kristina Rhianoff, after the pair were spotted linking arms on a London tube train.Ben and Kristina have since started a relationship and the pair welcomed their first child together in 2016.
5 of 114. Did Matt Di Angelo and Flavia Cacace date on Strictly Come Dancing?
Things must have been awkward backstage at Strictly in 2007 when Flavia Cacace reportedly dumped her long-term dance partner and boyfriend of eight-years, Vincent Simone, for Eastenders actor Matt Di Angelo.At the time the actor told the Daily Mail: "The funny thing was the story did not start off as true, but the more you read it, the more you started to believe it and actually act on it."However, Flavia split from Matt in 2010 and went on to wed actor Jimi Mistry (who she met whilst partnered together on Strictly in 2010) in December 2013.
6 of 115. Ali Bastian and Brian Fortuna: Strictly relationship
Former Hollyoaks actress Ali Bastian and her dance partner, Brian Fortuna, got together in 2009 after starring together on the show - but split a year later.
7 of 116. Rachel Riley and Pasha Kovalev: Strictly Come Dancing fairy tale ending
Rachel Riley shocked everyone when she revealed she was splitting from husband of just 15-months Jamie Gilbert during her time on Strictly in 2013. Less than a year later, the Countdown star announced she was dating her Strictly partner Pasha Kovalev - but insisted there was no overlap between the two romances.
8 of 117. Kara Tointon and Artem Chigvintsev: Strictly Come Dancing relationship
Kara Tointon not only bagged the Strictly glitter ball in 2010 but also a hunky new boyfriend when she embarked on a romance with her Strictly partner Artem Chigvintsev.However, after three years of being together the pair split, and the former EastEnders actress told The Telegraph: "We are not together. We're fine, but we aren't a couple anymore."
9 of 118. Georgia May Foote and Sean Ward: Strictly Curse
When Georgia entered the competition in 2015 she was dating her Coronation Street co-star, Sean Ward. At the time she reassured everyone that she was in a happy relationship and she was just good friends with her dance partner Giovanni.However, shortly after the competition finished she ended her relationship with Sean and started a relationship with Giovanni.Unfortunately Georgia and Giovanni split before series 14 started. The former Coronation Street actress announced the news on Twitter, writing: "It is with great sadness we have decided to split up. There is nobody else involved."Although it was not an easy decision to make sometimes you realise that it is better to be friends and this is one of those times."We both have very busy work schedules for the rest of the year so we are both going to focus on our upcoming work projects and we wish each other well for the future."
10 of 119. Did Helen George split from Oliver Boot because of Strictly?
Helen George appeared on Strictly in 2015 and split from her husband Oliver Boot of three years. Were they hit by the Strictly curse?
11 of 1110. Did Susanna Reid and Dominic Cotton break up because of Strictly?
Susanna Reid featured on Strictly during series 11. After the show finished, Susanna and her partner Dominic Cotton split.The TV presenter denied the end of their relationship being related to the Strictly curse, she told the Daily Mirror: "I think people think Strictly was bound in what happened. It wasn't."Obviously things have been challenging in my personal life but we are getting things sorted."
Brendan, who has only ever won the series once - the first ever series with TV presenter Natasha Kaplinsky, admitted to Lorraine that it was "hard to talk about."
He said: "The BBC haven’t renewed my contract. We get contracted year upon year. They’ve made an editorial decision to not have me back on the show."
WOW. We know he's a bit divisive on the show, but we can't believe show bosses felt this strongly!
Poor Bren confessed: "I’m a little bit in shock. I’m quite emotional, a bit raw about it.
"It’s done via a process of a phone call and stuff. I have had 15 incredible series on the show. I’m very proud of the whole show. It’s a great team.
"I’m disappointed. It’s very hard to talk about. It’s a recent decision."
But he also revealed that it had not exactly been a surprise to him: "I've always known this day would come.
"To get to this point, the BBC make the decisions year upon year. It’s an editorial decision. I’m sure I’ll never know the ins and outs. I’m a very strong character within the show, I have my strong views. I like being a character on the show."
Well now, we can't argue with that!
Sadly, the New Zealand native admitted that he wasn't quite ready to leave: "I’ve always said as long as I’ve got a passion for it I want to be there. My passion is still very much there. I’ll miss being part of the team.
"I’ll miss being a Strictly dancer. It’s kind of weird to imagine yourself not having that as your… I do a lot of other things of course, but the main thing I’ve been known for is to be a dancer on Strictly. It feels quite raw."
Although he tried to stay impartial, he couldn't help hitting out at the BBC: "It’s their decision, the powers that be within the BBC, they’ll have a vision of the show and I’m not part of the vision, that’s OK.
"Listen, I accept, you’ve got to accept what decisions are made. I would have preferred to have made the decision myself, but maybe I would never have made it - because I love being on the show.
"The last five years I haven’t really made much of a noise on the show with my partners, they haven’t been able to do what I’ve wanted to do. No disrespect to them. I haven’t had one of the ones that had a bit of dance experience that you can really challenge.
"So it’s one of those things where you go, I’ve asked this question many times of myself, ‘When do I leave?’ Every year, I’ve gone, ‘I love the show too much’. I love the fact that I’ve been there from the start. I feel like I’ve made a massive difference to the show and to the show that it is today."
**WATCH: Brendan Cole reveals he was not ready to leave Strictly Come Dancing **
Brendan, for who the news was so fresh that he'd only told the other Strictly pros "ten minutes ago," went on to say: "I’m a fan of the show. The show comes first. They’ve made the decision, I respect it completely, I don’t like it very much, but I respect it completely and I will still watch the show, I still want to support my friends that are in it."
He even joked about his clashes with newest head judge Shirley Ballas: "No one will argue with the judges – I don’t know who I’m going to hand the baton to!"
But Shirley herself wasn't even sure whether she would be returning to the show this time last week.
She told us at the NTAs that she still hadn't been confirmed either way, saying: "If I get the invitation I would love to come back. I really enjoyed the series, it's amazing to be a part of."
Ooh - "if I get the invitation..." Is that a little bit of shade there, Shirls?
She went on to admit that whilst she had been nervous to begin with, she soon "found her feet," adding: "I thought I was growing a bit towards the end – just as it finished!"
Strictly have responded to Brendan's interview, saying that they are grateful for his years on the show.
But fans are NOT happy with the decision, saying that the show won't be the same without him.
Eek!
**Will you be sad to see Brendan go? Let us know over on **Facebook and Twitter.
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