Katya Jones, 30, and Neil Jones, 37, headed to the dance studios for a Strictly Come Dancing reunion as they joined their fellow colleagues to meet this year’s celebrities for the first time. The day saw the professionals introduce themselves to their possible partners before all the contestants put their moves to the test in a group dancing session. The 15 hopeful celebrities will be seeking to lift the coveted Glitterball trophy alongside their professional partners. Katya took to Instagram to share a behind-the-scenes clip ahead of meeting the celebrities.
Taking to her Instagram stories, the Russian-born champion was joined by dancers Nadiya Bychkova and Luba Mushtuk.
The dancer said: “We’re just about to go and meet the celebs! We’re so excited.”
In the short clip, Neil could be seen in the background as the former couple were joined by their fellow Strictly professionals.
Their reunion comes just a few days after Neil and Katya told fans in a joint statement that they were separating.
It read: “As our fans and loyal supporters you are really important to us and so we wanted to let you know some news.
“After 11 years, we have made the mutual decision to separate.
“We will always love each other, just in a different way as friends. This will never change what a great team we make and we are really proud of everything we have achieved together.
“Our shared love of dance means we will keep working and dancing together as well as exploring individual projects. No matter what we do we will always support and respect each other.
“We wish one another every happiness and we will remain the best of friends. We are really looking forward to getting back to the ballroom and can’t wait to keep on dancing.
“Lots of love from us both.”
The couple’s relationship was brought into the spotlight when Katya was spotted kissing her celebrity dance partner Seann Walsh, 33, during a night out last year.
Pictures of the comedian and the dancer’s kiss were published by The Sun.
Seann was in a relationship with his girlfriend Rebecca Humphris at the time, but they split in the days after.
The pair both issued an apology for the kiss at the time of the incident and said it was a “mistake”.
There is no suggestion Neil and Katya’s separation was caused by the kissing drama.
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One next month.
