Atlanta, GA 12/9/2010 10:37:22 PM
Ricky Whittle has slammed 'Strictly Come Dancing' as "manipulative".
The former 'Hollyoaks' star - who competed on the BBC One celebrity
talent show last year - claims bosses cleverly edited the show to make
it look like he was having an affair with dance partner Natalie Lowe.
He also believes the show's production team secretly fed news stories to the press to keep fans interested in the series.
Ricky explained: "We were there to be 'the affair' and leave pretty
quickly, but our routines were too good. They never expected me to
reach the final. You get there and they tell you not to worry about a
thing, not to worry about reports in the press, but then they
manipulate it all themselves.
"One time they made it appear as if I was discussing my love for
Natalie. It just cut to me saying, 'She's the whole package'. That was
totally out of context. It was as a teacher and dancer that I was
describing her as the whole package."
Ricky - who is now training for the 'Strictly' UK tour - has also
complained he went out for a meal with Natalie and her parents after a
long day of rehearsals, and it was branded a "romantic" night out.
He added to the Daily Star newspaper: "The reports described it as a
romantic meal. They all mentioned my quote from the show. It was all so
nicely designed. It's totally rigged, but at least I came out well."
