How Strictly’s Popular Dancers have actually Ended up In Debt

For viewers tuning into BBC’s megahit Strictly Come Dancing, they would be best in presuming that its stars need to be making a significant fortune.

Whether it be the tireless hours of training, or being an on-screen component for weeks on end, the program’s expert dancers have assisted make the series a fascinating watch throughout the fall months.

However, while it has actually been presumed that Strictly experts must earn a quite cent, and years of success, through their time on the show, for many it’s an entirely different story.

Pros who have bid farewell to the Strictly dancefloor recently have actually shared their struggles with stacking debts and money problems, with some even facing the possibility of losing their homes.

Recently, Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff become the latest stars to be hit by the notorious ‘Strictly curse’ after their 12-year romance ended in heartbreak. MailOnline then revealed it was the severe financial difficulties they had actually just recently experienced are believed to have lagged their split.

MailOnline peels back the shine behind Strictly stars’ incomes to expose the reality about how for lots of, the cash stops as soon as the ballroom lights go dark …

Kristina Rihanoff

How Strictly’s popular dancers have actually wound up in debt – as Kristina Rihanoff’s financial problems are blamed for split from Ben Cohen (imagined on the show in 2013)

Kristina previously appeared on Strictly as an expert from 2008 to 2015, making headings when she began a romance with her celeb partner Ben Cohen.

However, last year, the couple shared worries that they could lose their home after being struck by cash problems, with Ben laying bare their monetary troubles in court.

The degree of the couple’s struggles were laid bare in unusual situations – during a court look last September when Kristina, 47, was caught driving without insurance coverage.

Giving evidence during the case, England World Cup winning rugby star Ben, 46, admitted he had mishandled the handling of their vehicle insurance plan and told how he was ‘fighting to conserve his relationship and home’.

A pal of the couple informed the Mail he said: ‘The previous 6 months have been hell for them and it has actually torn the love they had apart. For the sake of their household, they have selected to go forward as separate people.

‘Those close to them who know them as a couple had hoped they would be able to work things out however for now it’s over and it appears like there’s no going back.’

The couple were left with crippling financial obligations after they tilled every cent they had into a yoga studio which plunged into crisis throughout the Covid pandemic.

In a tortuously frank admission Ben told the court: ‘I get up every day and I fight not to lose whatever – to lose my automobiles and my house and my relationship. I’m so overdrawn.’

Last year the couple shared worries that they could lose their home after being struck by money concerns, with Ben laying bare their financial issues in court (pictured in 2021)

When questioned about the pressures on his and Kristina’s relationship, he said: ‘We’re still living together. We’re in it financially.

‘We’re in business together so the issue is that we opened business before Covid and we got the worst intensities of it and in all honestly this is simply another problem for me to deal with.

‘I have actually got charge card that are overdrawn. I’m overdrawn in both accounts. We have actually got a service financial obligation because of Covid. It’s simply another problem.’

The company was noted to be compulsorily struck off on December 27, 2022, but the action was suspended nine days later on and ceased on April 28, 2023.

Records also reveal that a food services business called Soo Greens Ltd which is 100 per cent owned by Soo Yoga Group Ltd was effectively ₤ 6,633 at a loss, taking into account future liabilities, in its last represent the duration ending on July 31, 2020.

The company’s represent the year ending in July 2021 have actually still not been filed and are now nearly 29 months overdue.

Another company called Soo Purple Mountain Ltd which is also owned by the Soo Yoga Group, was set up in December 2021 and liquified by a voluntary strike off in February this year without ever filing accounts.

A 4th business called Soo Group Ltd which was half owned by Cohen and half owned by 3 other individuals was also integrated and voluntarily struck off on the same dates.

A 5th company called Yoga Wellbeing which is one hundred percent owned by Rihanoff was ₤ 5,041 at a loss, taking into account future liabilities, at the end of July 2020. Its accounts are likewise nearly 29 months past due, according to Companies House records.

AJ Pritchard

AJ first increased to popularity as a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing from 2016 to 2019, leaving the show just months before the Covid pandemic (imagined with Saffron Barker in 2019)

But AJ has since shed light on the cash concerns some Strictly stars can face, and shared that he was plunged into financial obligation when his dance tour was cancelled in 2020

AJ initially increased to fame as an entrant on Strictly Come Dancing from 2016 to 2019, leaving the program simply months before the Covid pandemic.

While the star had actually formerly wanted to kickstart a brand-new era of dance success by leaving the show, the pandemic forced him to cancel his planned dance tour, plunging himself and brother Curtis into financial obligation.

Speaking with MailOnline, AJ clarified the money woes some Strictly stars can face after leaving the program.

He stated: ‘We had a business where we were running our own tour and the trip was interrupted. We paid all of our dancers due to the fact that, personally, I seemed like that was the right thing to do. We ended up with a barrel expense which came out of our own pocket.

‘We didn’t make money, myself or Curtis, however we paid all of our dancers. It’s a hard decision to be made, but that’s what it is when you are running your own company.

‘They absolutely did value it. I perhaps didn’t value the debt that I was left in however, hey, it’s a decision that was made.’

AJ stated it is hard when a great deal of his buddies believe he’s a ‘millionaire’ after starring on Strictly, nevertheless, he described that after they paid their taxes and VAT, the figure he earns is nowhere near that.

The dancer stated: ‘I believe a great deal of individuals anticipate you to go on to Strictly or Love Island and instantly be a millionaire. Once you’ve paid your tax and your VAT, and if you’re a minimal company, that’s not even close.

‘I believe openness is a favorable thing in this day and age, but the majority of individuals don’t really desire to speak about their finances.

‘And I believe people are captivated by cash. People enjoy to see numbers and enjoy to see nice things, and a lot of times you require to live within your own means.’

After leaving shows such as Strictly and Love Island, Curtis and AJ were tossed into a variety of big money offers and AJ states some individuals have no idea how to deal with that type of sum of money.

Former I’m A Celeb star AJ exposed he and Curtis ‘wish to make a difference’ and have set up ‘using our own money’ a monetary investment business called FINT to assist to ‘educate’ people.

AJ became very open about how sometimes the TV reservations and photoshoots can all of a sudden stop and stars need to discover how to ‘adapt’ their profession.

AJ said it is hard when a lot of his buddies believe he’s a ‘millionaire’ after starring on Strictly, as after they paid their taxes and VAT, the figure he makes is nowhere near that

He continued: ‘It’s actually difficult I believe in our industry, the entertainment market and a great deal of other industries right now because a great deal of people are being laid off. It does play on your mental health if you don’t have that next task.

‘Myself and Curtis have invested cash, from my extremely first salary on Strictly I have actually constantly had actually that cash invested into various portfolios. Therefore, if I didn’t have a job in six months time, I do have cash there that I can draw on if I require it.

‘And at the end of the day, there are always jobs out there. It’s just sometimes needing to change what it is you think you are going to do and adapt a little bit. Adapting is difficult however you do have to adjust often.

‘It is necessary that people go into these huge programs that they’re enjoying however they have a profession behind them like myself and Curt. We’re both professional dancers, we can go all over the world and teach.’

Every day, people are dealing with the expense of living crisis and AJ confessed he is no different and is regularly snapped back into the ‘real world’ as he’s noticed the dramatic increase in everyday products.

He described: ‘Each and every single day I’m brought back to reality. I brought up at the gas pump today and the diesel was 10p more costly due to decisions that have actually been made much higher up than my income. That’s the genuine world.

‘I resembled, ‘What 10p more expensive from the other day to today’, like that’s crazy. I think individuals forget, the cost of living and inflation’s increased.

‘Even when inflation comes down, it does not suggest that it returns to what it was. Life is going to be difficult for a lot of people this year and I don’t think it’s going to get any easier.’

Robin Windsor

Despite drawing in an excellent ₤ 100,000 as a star of Strictly, Robin Windsor unfortunately died with just ₤ 879 in his business’s organization account

Despite pulling in an excellent ₤ 100,000 as a star of Strictly, Robin Windsor tragically passed away with just ₤ 879 in his business’s company account.

The dancer was discovered dead in a London hotel in February in 2015, and in the wake of his passing it was revealed his company had actually not traded for some time and according to Companies House Records was dealing with an ‘active proposal’ to be struck off.

The business Happy Feet Creative Limited was owed nearly ₤ 5,000 the last time it filed accounts, but owed creditors ₤ 15,000, implying it was ₤ 8,350 in the red.

At the height of his star in 2015 and 2016 he held more than ₤ 23,000 in the business and advanced himself ₤ 35,000 from the company, which was repaid.

The company had actually carried profits from a ‘variety of contracts to supply carrying out arts services within the media industry’, documentation said.

In the months prior to his death, Robin had actually been dealing with a Fred Olsen Cruise – together with fellow Strictly professional Gordana Grandosek Whiddon – and posted photos of himself when the boat docked in South Africa.

Robin previously informed how he was paid ₤ 100,000 a year during his time on Strictly which pertained to an end after the 12th series in 2014.

The dancer was found dead in a London hotel in February, and in the wake of his passing it was revealed his company had actually not traded for a long time (visualized on the program in 2013)

He also remembered one time he earned ‘ridiculous cash’, telling This Is Money: ‘My dance partner and I were as soon as paid ₤ 10,000 each to remain in a luxury resort in Mauritius for a week and dance the cha-cha-cha at an occasion. Our dance lasted two minutes.’

He kept in mind in September 2022 that the ‘best’ year of his monetary life was 2010, ‘my very first year on Strictly Come Dancing’.

He stated: ‘All of an abrupt, I was generating income I had actually only dreamt about. I probably made about ₤ 100,000 that year – not simply from Strictly but from work off the back of the show such as the trip and private efficiencies.

‘When you’re on prime-time TV, everybody wants a little piece of you.’

Speaking about his Strictly exit, Robin stated he ended up being so ‘bitter’ about not being allowed to return that he couldn’t bear to enjoy it, and he entered into a ‘steady decline’ after leaving the show.

Graziano Di Prima

Graziano was dramatically sacked by bosses in 2015 following claims of gross misbehavior towards his former celeb partner Zara McDermott

Following his departure from the program, Graziano attempted to cash on his looks on the show, with customised video messages on Cameo

Graziano was when considered a preferred among Strictly fans, but in 2015 he was drastically sacked by employers following claims of gross misbehavior towards his former celeb partner Zara McDermott.

The dancer later validated and regretted his actions against Zara.

Addressing his exit from the show, a ‘devastated’ Di Prima wrote on Instagram: ‘I deeply regret the events that resulted in my departure from Strictly.

Strictly Come Dancing rich list: The professional dancers waltzing all the way to the bank after earning MILLIONS thanks to the show

‘My intense enthusiasm and decision to win might have affected my training routine.

‘While respecting the BBC HR process, I acknowledge it’s just best for the sake of the program that I step away. I am saddened that I wasn’t permitted to provide a quote to the online news stories, and I take on board the sensitivity of the circumstance.

‘There’s more to this story that I am unable to talk about at this time, but I am dedicated to being strong for my friends and family. I want the Strictly household absolutely nothing however success in the future.’

Following his departure from the program, Graziano tried to cash on his looks on the program, with personalised video messages on Cameo.

The dancer charged $100 (₤ 78) for a video message, and continued to describe himself as a ‘professional dancer on Strictly’ on his profile.

And the stars who have actually cashed in on their Strictly success …

Oti Mabuse

For lots of fans, Oti is thought about one of Strictly’s most successful exports, with the dancer crowned series champion for two years in a row, in 2019 and 2020

Ever since, she has looked like a judge on Dancing On Ice, and also earned a reported ₤ 200,000 charge for her stint on I’m A Celeb Get Me Out Of Here! in 2015

For many fans, Oti is considered among Strictly’s most effective exports, with the dancer crowned series champion for 2 years in a row, in 2019 and 2020.

The dancer was reported to be on a ₤ 410,000 wage before she left the show in 2022, and considering that her exit has generated a huge fortune with a string of successful TV gigs.

Since then, she has actually looked like a judge on Dancing On Ice, and was also a panellist on The Masked Dancer, and BBC’s The best Dancer, adding to a rumoured fortune of more than ₤ 1.4 million.

Before signing up with the Strictly lineup, Oti also worked as an expert dancer on Strictly’s German equivalent, Let’s Dance.

Oti is listed as a director of Pure Mabuse Limited, which she established with her spouse Marius Iepure, which was set up in February 2017, and has noted possessions of ₤ 510,953, according to its latest accounts.

In 2022, Oti likewise signed a big-money deal to work together with Bravissimo on a ‘confidence increasing’ underwear variety, and she and spouse Marius likewise share a ₤ 590,000 London mansion.

Between them, Oti and Marius hold ₤ 750,000 of possessions in four personal business, which they co-own. including the home firm, Lionshead, which notched up ₤ 110,582 in properties since in 2015.

And Oti has actually only contributed to her fortune in recent months by appearing on I’m A Star Get Me Out Of Here! where she was apparently paid a ₤ 200,000 fee.

Kevin Clifton

Kevin Clifton was crowned Strictly champion in 2018 with Stacey Dooley, and after leaving the program in 2020, has actually cashed in with a string of stage roles

However, the dancer has actually formerly shared that it hasn’t always been simple, exposing in 2019 that he used to sleep in his automobile while attempting to kickstart his carrying out career

Since leaving Strictly in 2020, Kevin Clifton has actually taken to the stage, performing in Strictly Ballroom, Rock of Ages and War of the Worlds.

His company Supreme Dance stated ₤ 104,993 in its latest properties with ₤ 42,234 staying after costs.

However, the dancer has formerly shared that it hasn’t constantly been easy, revealing in 2019 that he used to oversleep his cars and truck while attempting to start his performing profession, while managing it with a workplace task.

Speaking on his podcast The Kevin Clifton Show, he stated: ‘If there’s no one there, I’ll sleep in my automobile and after that I can manage two of my dance lessons tomorrow.

loads of time sleeping in my automobile – essentially living out of my car – and having no work. It’s not all glamour. People think we live these easy, showbiz, attractive lives and it’s not like that.

‘There’s been times where I was just getting fired from job after job – typical office jobs, just attempting to sustain my dancer career.

‘I was essentially looking in my wallet going, I have actually simply been fired from another job. I have actually got four lessons tomorrow; I already can’t pay for two of them.

‘I’m going to have to blag it with the instructor and state,” Oh, there’s been a problem at the bank. I’m going to need to give you the cash on my next lesson.” James and Ola Jordan

Business: James and Ola Jordan have cashed in on their joint weight reduction over the last few years, establishing a physical fitness site called Dance Shred where they charge ₤ 12.99 monthly to subscribe

James Jordan left Strictly in 2013 with his other half Ola following fit 2 years lateer.

James has actually appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, returned a few years later for the All Stars variation and won Dancing On Ice in 2019.

The couple have actually capitalized their joint weight loss over the last few years, establishing a fitness site called Dance Shred where they charge ₤ 12.99 monthly to subscribe.

The pair offered their Kent mansion for ₤ 2.5 million previously this year and have because scaled down to a home more ‘ideal’ for their child Ella.

Much of their earnings is funnelled through their firm James and Ola Dance Academy which most just recently had ₤ 774,023 in assets and ₤ 465,002 after expenses.

They earn money by offering signed pictures for ₤ 9.50 while Ola uses dance lessons to fans at ₤ 300 a pop.

Strictly Come DancingBen CohenBBC