Katya Jones has explained the "truth" behind the comment she made towards Lawrence Robb on Strictly Come Dancing. The TV star, 37, serves as a professional on the BBC Saturday night favourite and this year, she has been paired up with content creator John Nellis, with whom she topped the leaderboard last weekend.
But it was Katya's reaction to seeing actor Lawrence, 34, who is best known for playing Mackenzie Boyd in Emmerdale, perform with Jowita Przystał that got people talking. The first live show got underway over the weekend and saw the celebrities take to the floor for the first time, but one surprising moment came about when Katya seemed to mouth the words "He's fit" about Lawrence when she was on camera.
Ed Balls reveals WhatsApp text
Her actual words have been under scrutiny ever since as the audio was not clear, but now, Katya's friend Ed Balls, whom she danced with on Strictly in 2016, has spoken out on her behalf. On Tuesday's edition of Good Morning Britain, Ed spoke out on the matter, and revealed that Katya had sent him a text message explaining the truth.
He said: "I said yesterday it was pretty clear she [Katya] said 'he's fit'. In my heart of hearts I still think that, but she sent me a WhatsApp and it said 'I said fierce.' Katya has always told me the unvarnished truth so it must be true."
"Knowing Katya, I think she probably said fit," shouting out the word "fit" for emphasis. It was then that Susanna Reid chimed in with: "There we go! It's confirmed!"
Lawrence's girlfriend weighs in
Shortly after it all happened, Lawrence's girlfriend Pamela Blair weighed on on the subject, making it clear which side of the story she believed. She replied to a video of Katya mouthing the two words: "So fierce."
It was a great weekend for Katya though, as she and content creator John reigned supreme, beating the likes of EastEnders icon Lacey Turner, and singer Delta Goodrem to the top spot on the leaderboard.
John Nellis on his Strictly debut
John himself still can't believe he's on the line-up this year, as he prepares to debut on the ballroom floor. He too hasn't stopped laughing about his next venture, so it's no wonder his family didn't take it seriously.
He said: "They thought it was a joke, then after convincing them, there were lots of hugs. I also have a very large wider family, so there have been lots of ticket requests!"
Strictly Come Dancing airs Saturdays and Sundays on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
