TV

AJ Pritchard has his say on those Mollie King romance rumours – at last

He had a Christmas surprise for the Saturdays star!

Few stories have captured the imagination like the Mollie King and AJ Pritchard saga.

Since the last series of Strictly finished, there’s been one huge question on everyone’s lips: “Are they or aren’t they?”

Even though Saturdays star Mollie, 30, claimed in November that she was single, rumours of a romance have persisted, with every one of the two stars’ social media uploads and TV appearances closely scrutinised by fans.

Well, it looks like the speculation can finally be brought to an end, as AJ, 23, has revealed exactly where things stand between the pair.

The Stoke-born star has insisted that he and Mollie are definitely NOT dating. But not only that – he didn’t even buy her a gift over the festive period!

He told the Metro: “No, we’re not an item, but we’re friends for life.

“I didn’t get her a Christmas present, unfortunately… it sounds really bad, doesn’t it!”

Mollie and AJ seem to have been inseparable since the BBC dancing show finished.

They’ve been seen enjoying intimate meals, holding hands and cosying up together in social-media snaps.

Read more: Mollie King FINALLY opens up about romance rumours with AJ Pritchard

However, some fans were concerned when Mollie uploaded and then swiftly DELETED a sweet photo of the pair from her Instagram account, just before Christmas.

Last week, Mollie admitted that she’d been affected by the pressure of living under the Strictly spotlight over the past few months.

Appearing on Lorraine, she said: “There’s definitely a lot of attention when you’re on one of these shows.

Read more: Mollie King issues advice to Dancing On Ice stars after ‘terrifying’ Strictly stint

“Obviously, romance rumours as well as, obviously, everything that comes along with it – you know, the scrutiny and being judged on national TV – it’s terrifying but it’s the most amazing experience.

“You spend 12 hours a day together and you do just become so close. You have to really trust your partner.”

Mollie and AJ may not be an item – and maybe they never were – but the rumours certainly didn’t do Strictly’s viewing figures any harm.

The 2017 series was the most popular in the show’s history, drawing in an average of 11 million viewers a week – slightly higher than the 10.9 million a week achieved by the 2010 series.


Nancy Brown
Associate Editor