Strictly Come Dancing champion Ellie Leach felt tearful after making an announcement with partner Vito Coppola and being questioned about their relationship.
The Coronation Street actress, 22, and her professional partner, 31, won the glitterball trophy (which she has since shattered) after competing in the final against Bobby Brazier with Dianne Buswell and Layton Williams with Nikita Kuzmin.
Over their time on the BBC One competition, the duo has captivated the public’s hearts and left romance speculations buzzing, with many clues indicating that the famed Strictly curse had struck.
However, they have yet to clarify whether a romance has formed, despite Ellie being probed about the allegations on This Morning.
Ellie thought on her success with Vito instead of answering Craig Doyle’s question about whether their friendship had grown into a romance.
The pair, who are now part of the This Morning family and teach couples how to dance, discussed how dancing has become a ‘big part’ of her life and how she still ‘cannot believe’ she won.
She said: ‘Dancing helps me in a lot of ways and it has become a huge part of my life. It’s something that I really, really fell in love with, and if we can kind of help people feel the same way then that is amazing.
‘I don’t think it will ever sink in, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.
‘I still cannot believe that we won. I have watched that video over and over and over again and I still can not believe it.’
‘You’re getting emotional!’ Vito pointed out.
She went on: ‘It was such an emotional time and it kind of feels like a dream.
‘It kind of feels like it didn’t happen but it was the best dream ever.’
She went on to talk about how her confidence was boosted during her time on Strictly, saying she ‘started as a girl and left a woman’.
‘I have grown in confidence so much and fallen in love with dancing so much.’
Craig then inquired a second time about Ellie and Vito’s relationship, to which they replied that they had a ‘wonderful relationship’ and that they planned to get a tattoo.
While neither confirming nor rejecting the reports, the pair revealed the crazy ink they’ve promised to obtain together.
‘We made a promise,’ Vito began, explaining that if they made it to the final, they would get the matching tattoo.
‘But it was just a joke because we didn’t expect to get there,’ Ellie added.
After an inside joke and Vito’s fondness for parmagiana, the couple decided to have a tattoo combining an image of a bee, which represents Ellie’s home in Manchester, and an eggplant.
‘That is a symbol of our bond and our friendship.’
This Morning airs weekdays from 10am on ITV1. Strictly Come Dancing is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.