How Strictly’s Popular Dancers have Wound Up In Debt
For viewers tuning into BBC’s megahit Strictly Come Dancing, they would be ideal in assuming that its stars should be making a substantial fortune.
Whether it be the vigorous hours of training, or being an on-screen component for weeks on end, the show’s professional dancers have helped make the series a captivating watch throughout the autumn months.
However, while it has actually been assumed that Strictly must earn a quite cent, and years of success, through their time on the program, for a lot of it’s an entirely different story.
Pros who have actually bid farewell to the Strictly dancefloor in the last few years have shared their battles with stacking debts and cash woes, with some even dealing with the prospect of losing their homes.
Recently, Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff become the latest stars to be hit by the infamous ‘Strictly curse’ after their 12-year love ended in heartbreak. MailOnline then revealed it was the severe financial problems they had actually just recently experienced are thought to have actually lagged their split.
MailOnline peels back the glitter behind Strictly stars’ incomes to reveal the truth about how for numerous, the cash stops as soon as the ballroom lights go dark …
Kristina Rihanoff
How Strictly’s popular dancers have ended up in debt – as Kristina Rihanoff’s financial difficulties are blamed for split from Ben Cohen (visualized on the program in 2013)
Kristina previously appeared on Strictly as an expert from 2008 to 2015, making headlines when she started a love with her celebrity partner Ben Cohen.
However, last year, the couple shared worries that they could lose their home after being struck by money issues, with Ben laying bare their financial concerns in court.
The level of the couple’s battles were laid bare in unusual circumstances – throughout a court appearance last September when Kristina, 47, was caught driving without insurance coverage.
Giving evidence during the case, England World Cup winning rugby star Ben, 46, confessed he had actually mishandled the handling of their automobile insurance coverage and told how he was ‘fighting to conserve his relationship and home’.
A good friend of the couple informed the Mail he said: ‘The past 6 months have been hell for them and it has torn the love they had apart. For the sake of their family, they have selected to go forward as separate individuals.
‘Those near them who know them as a couple had hoped they would be able to work things out but for now it’s over and it appears like there’s no going back.’
The couple were entrusted debilitating debts 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 informed the court: ‘I get up every day and I battle not to lose everything – to lose my cars and my home and my relationship. I’m so overdrawn.’
Last year the couple shared fears that they might lose their home after being struck by money woes, with Ben laying bare their financial woes in court (envisioned in 2021)
When questioned about the stress on his and Kristina’s relationship, he said: ‘We’re still living together. We remain in it financially.
‘We’re in business together so the issue is that we opened business before Covid and we got the worst severities of it and in all truthfully this is simply another issue for me to handle.
‘I have actually got credit cards that are overdrawn. I’m overdrawn in both accounts. We have got a company financial obligation due to the fact that of Covid. It’s just 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 stopped on April 28, 2023.
Records likewise expose that a food services business called Soo Greens Ltd which is 100 percent owned by Soo Yoga Group Ltd was efficiently ₤ 6,633 at a loss, taking into account future liabilities, in its last represent the period ending on July 31, 2020.
The business’s represent the year ending in July 2021 have actually still not been filed and are now almost 29 months overdue.
Another business 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 submitting accounts.
A 4th business called Soo Group Ltd which was half owned by Cohen and half owned by 3 other people was likewise included and willingly struck off on the exact same dates.
A fifth business called Yoga Wellbeing which is 100 percent owned by Rihanoff was ₤ 5,041 in the red, taking into consideration future liabilities, at the end of July 2020. Its accounts are likewise almost 29 months past due, according to Companies House records.
AJ Pritchard
AJ initially rose to fame 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 because shed light on the cash woes some Strictly stars can face, and shared that he was plunged into financial obligation when his dance tour was cancelled in 2020
AJ initially rose to popularity as a participant on Strictly Come Dancing from 2016 to 2019, leaving the program simply months before the Covid pandemic.
While the star had previously wished to start a brand-new era of dance success by departing the program, the pandemic forced him to cancel his scheduled dance tour, plunging himself and brother Curtis into debt.
Speaking to MailOnline, AJ clarified the cash problems some Strictly stars can deal with after leaving the program.
He stated: ‘We had a business where we were running our own trip and the tour was cut short. We paid all of our dancers because, personally, I seemed like that was the ideal thing to do. We ended up with a VAT costs which came out of our own pocket.
‘We didn’t earn 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 business.
‘They certainly did appreciate it. I possibly didn’t value the financial obligation that I was left in however, hey, it’s a decision that was made.’
AJ said it is hard when a lot of his friends believe he’s a ‘millionaire’ after starring on Strictly, however, he described that after they paid their taxes and VAT, the figure he makes is no place near that.
The dancer said: ‘I think a lot of people anticipate you to go on to Strictly or Love Island and immediately be a millionaire. Once you have actually paid your tax and your VAT, and if you’re a minimal company, that’s not even close.
‘I believe transparency is a favorable thing in this day and age, but a lot of people do not truly wish to discuss their financial resources.
‘And I believe people are intrigued by money. People love to see numbers and enjoy to see nice things, and a lot of times you require to live within your own ways.’
After leaving programs such as Strictly and Love Island, Curtis and AJ were thrown into a variety of big money offers and AJ states some people have no concept how to handle that type of amount of money.
Former I’m A Celeb star AJ exposed he and Curtis ‘wish to make a difference’ and have established ‘utilizing our own cash’ a financial investment business called FINT to assist to ‘inform’ people.
AJ became extremely open about how sometimes the TV reservations and photoshoots can suddenly stop and stars have to learn how to ‘adapt’ their profession.
AJ said it is hard when a lot of his buddies think he’s a ‘millionaire’ after starring on Strictly, as after they paid their taxes and VAT, the figure he earns is no place near that
He continued: ‘It’s actually hard I think in our market, the entertainment industry and a lot of other industries today since a lot of individuals are being laid off. It does use your mental health if you do not have that next task.
‘Myself and Curtis have actually invested cash, from my extremely first salary on Strictly I’ve always had that money invested into various portfolios. Therefore, if I didn’t have a task in 6 months time, I do have money there that I can make use of if I need it.
‘And at the end of the day, there are always tasks out there. It’s just sometimes having to alter what it is you believe you are going to do and adapt a little bit. Adapting is tough however you do have to adapt in some cases.
‘It is necessary that individuals enter into these big programs that they’re taking pleasure in but they have an occupation behind them like myself and Curt. We’re both expert dancers, we can go all over the world and teach.’
Every day, people are facing the expense of living crisis and AJ confessed he is no various and is regularly snapped back into the ‘real life’ as he’s observed the remarkable increase in daily items.
He described: ‘Every day I’m reminded reality. I brought up at the gas pump today and the diesel was 10p more expensive due to choices that have been made much higher up than my paycheck. 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 boils down, it doesn’t indicate that it returns to what it was. Life is going to be difficult for a lot of individuals this year and I do not believe it’s going to get any much easier.’
Robin Windsor
Despite drawing in an excellent ₤ 100,000 as a star of Strictly, Robin Windsor unfortunately passed away with simply ₤ 879 in his business’s business account
Despite pulling in a remarkable ₤ 100,000 as a star of Strictly, Robin Windsor unfortunately died with simply ₤ 879 in his company’s business account.
The dancer was discovered dead in a London hotel in February last year, and in the wake of his passing it was exposed his firm had actually not traded for a long time and according to Companies House Records was dealing with an ‘active proposition’ to be struck off.
The business Happy Feet Creative Limited was owed almost ₤ 5,000 the last time it submitted accounts, but owed lenders ₤ 15,000, suggesting it was ₤ 8,350 in the red.
At the height of his celebrity in 2015 and 2016 he held more than ₤ 23,000 in the company and advanced himself ₤ 35,000 from the company, which was paid back.
The company had actually transported incomes from a ‘wide range of agreements to provide performing arts services within the media industry’, paperwork said.
In the months prior to his death, Robin had actually been dealing with a Fred Olsen Cruise – along with fellow Strictly expert Gordana Grandosek Whiddon – and published images of himself when the boat docked in South Africa.
Robin formerly told how he was paid ₤ 100,000 a year throughout 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 firm had actually not traded for a long time (envisioned on the show in 2013)
He also remembered one time he made ‘silly cash’, informing This Is Money: ‘My dance partner and I were once paid ₤ 10,000 each to stay in a high-end resort in Mauritius for a week and dance the cha-cha-cha at an occasion. Our dance lasted two minutes.’
He remembered in September 2022 that the ‘finest’ year of his financial life was 2010, ‘my first year on Strictly Come Dancing’.
He said: ‘All of a sudden, I was making money I had only dreamt about. I most likely made about ₤ 100,000 that year – not simply from Strictly but from work off the back of the program such as the tour and private efficiencies.
‘When you’re on prime-time TV, everyone desires a little piece of you.’
Speaking about his Strictly exit, Robin stated he became so ‘bitter’ about not being enabled to return that he could not bear to watch it, and he entered into a ‘steady decrease’ after leaving the show.
Graziano Di Prima
Graziano was significantly sacked by employers last year following claims of gross misconduct towards his previous celeb partner Zara McDermott
Following his departure from the program, Graziano tried to cash on his looks on the program, with customised video messages on Cameo
Graziano was once thought about a preferred amongst Strictly fans, however in 2015 he was significantly sacked by employers following claims of gross misbehavior towards his former celebrity partner Zara McDermott.
The dancer later on validated and regretted his actions versus 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 abundant list: The professional dancers waltzing all the way to the bank after making MILLIONS thanks to the program
‘My intense enthusiasm and decision to win may have impacted my training routine.
‘While respecting the BBC HR procedure, I acknowledge it’s only ideal for the sake of the program that I step away. I am distressed that I wasn’t allowed to use a quote to the online news stories, and I take on board the level of sensitivity of the situation.
‘There’s more to this story that I am not able to go over at this time, however I am devoted to being strong for my friends and family. I want the Strictly household nothing however success in the future.’
Following his departure from the show, Graziano attempted to cash on his appearances on the program, with personalised video messages on Cameo.
The dancer charged $100 (₤ 78) for a video message, and continued to refer to himself as a ‘expert dancer on Strictly’ on his profile.
And the stars who have cashed in on their Strictly success …
Oti Mabuse
For lots of fans, Oti is thought about among Strictly’s most successful exports, with the dancer crowned series champ for 2 years in a row, in 2019 and 2020
Since then, she has actually appeared as 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! last year
For many fans, Oti is considered among Strictly’s most successful exports, with the dancer crowned series champion for two years in a row, in 2019 and 2020.
The dancer was reported to be on a ₤ 410,000 salary before she left the show in 2022, and given that her exit has actually accumulated a substantial fortune with a string of effective TV gigs.
Ever since, she has looked like a judge on Dancing On Ice, and was likewise a panellist on The Masked Dancer, and BBC’s The Greatest Dancer, contributing 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 set up with her husband Marius Iepure, which was set up in February 2017, and has listed properties of ₤ 510,953, according to its latest accounts.
In 2022, Oti likewise signed a big-money offer to team up with Bravissimo on a ‘self-confidence enhancing’ underwear variety, and she and spouse Marius also share a ₤ 590,000 London mansion.
Between them, Oti and Marius hold ₤ 750,000 of assets in four personal companies, which they co-own. consisting of the property firm, Lionshead, which notched up ₤ 110,582 in possessions as of in 2015.
And Oti has actually only contributed to her fortune in recent months by appearing on I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! where she was supposedly paid a ₤ 200,000 cost.
Kevin Clifton
Kevin Clifton was crowned Strictly champion in 2018 with Stacey Dooley, and after leaving the program in 2020, has moneyed in with a string of stage roles
However, the dancer has actually formerly shared that it hasn’t constantly been simple, revealing in 2019 that he utilized to oversleep his car while attempting to kickstart his carrying out career
Since leaving Strictly in 2020, Kevin Clifton has taken to the phase, carrying out in Strictly Ballroom, Rock of Ages and War of the Worlds.
His firm Supreme Dance stated ₤ 104,993 in its most current possessions with ₤ 42,234 staying after bills.
However, the dancer has formerly shared that it hasn’t constantly been simple, revealing in 2019 that he utilized to sleep in his car while trying to kickstart his performing profession, while handling it with an office task.
Speaking on his podcast The Kevin Clifton Show, he stated: ‘If there’s no one there, I’ll oversleep my automobile and then I can pay for 2 of my dance lessons tomorrow.
‘I spent loads of time oversleeping my vehicle – generally living out of my vehicle – and having no work. It’s not all glamour. People believe 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 task – normal workplace tasks, simply attempting to sustain my dancer profession.
‘I was basically looking in my wallet going, I have actually just been fired from another task. I’ve got 4 lessons tomorrow; I already can’t spend for 2 of them.
‘I’m going to have to blag it with the instructor and say,” Oh, there’s been a problem at the bank. I’m going to have 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 loss recently, establishing a fitness site called Dance Shred where they charge ₤ 12.99 monthly to subscribe
James Jordan left Strictly in 2013 with his spouse Ola doing the same 2 years lateer.
James has actually appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, returned a couple of years later for the All Stars version and won Dancing On Ice in 2019.
The couple have cashed in on their joint weight-loss in current years, establishing a physical fitness site called Dance Shred where they charge ₤ 12.99 each month to subscribe.
The pair sold their Kent mansion for ₤ 2.5 million previously this year and have actually given that downsized to a home more ‘ideal’ for their child Ella.
Much of their income is funnelled through their company James and Ola Dance Academy which most recently had ₤ 774,023 in properties and ₤ 465,002 after bills.
They make money by offering signed images for ₤ 9.50 while Ola uses dance lessons to fans at ₤ 300 a pop.
Strictly Come DancingBen CohenBBC
