Strictly pro dancer Katya Jones tells us about how she’s coped with 10 years of highs and lows on the BBC dance show – and the major change she’s hoping for in her personal life
As Katya Jones prepares to waltz back on to the dance floor for her 10th series of Strictly Come Dancing, she is as raring to go as she was a decade ago. Now 36, the three-times World and nine-times National Latin American champion has spent some hugely formative years on the show – with her fair share of highs and lows – and she arrives for her OK! exclusive photoshoot excited for what the next few months have in store.
“I’m always curious about how I’ll feel when the call comes to tell me if I have a job or not and this year was no different,” she says. “Every year I ask myself, ‘Is this still what I want to do? Do I love it as much as I did on day one?’ and the answer this time was, ‘Without a shadow of a doubt, yes.’”
Russian-born Katya, who began dancing aged six, won the Glitterball with Holby City actor Joe McFadden in 2017. It sits in her ‘hobby room’, next to her beloved piano and sewing machine (currently being used to upcycle a jacket for friend and fellow pro Luba Mushtuk). But their victory gave her more than just a sparkly trophy – it helped her believe in herself.
READ MORE: Kate Garraway’s figure-hugging teal dress is currently on sale with 50% off
“Before, as a multi-World and British champion, the feeling was, ‘You’re never good enough,’” Katya tells us. “Standing on the podium, I often didn’t feel I deserved to win. I’d be thinking, ‘But I didn’t do this bit right,’ or, ‘What will my coach say?’”
Today, Katya recognises that her and Joe’s success was “pretty incredible” and that her role as pro-dancer runs deeper than bagging the much-coveted prize. She is proud of bringing out the best in her celeb partners – as viewers saw for the first time with ex-politician Ed Balls in 2016.
“My first year with Ed was unexpectedly wonderful for me, and I think it was an unexpected highlight for everyone else,” she says. “Because of that, it was the first time in my life I thought, ‘I’m good at this.’
“Being able to encourage someone to train after an awful day is a win for me. Working out a routine that lets my celeb partner shine is a win. There are lots of less obvious wins than the Glitterball win, even though that’s pretty incredible, too.”
Another memorable moment, she says, was dressing up in a giant inflatable T-Rex costume and eating Chinese takeaway on the rehearsal room floor with a tired and sore Adam Peaty. “It really turned things around, we nailed it after that,” she laughs. “We are there for the celebrities when the mood is low, and I would do everything in my power to support them. Those are the times I think I’ve done my job well. They are what’s really special.”
Of course, Katya has had her share of tough times. In 2019, she and fellow Strictly pro Neil Jones separated after six years of marriage. More recently, she was dragged into the saga about the on- and off-screen conduct of her partner Wynne Evans.
The show has also faced scandals surrounding the ‘Strictly curse’ and abuse by pro dancers, but no one could accuse Katya of using the dramas to boost her profile. In fact, she’s one of the more private pro dancers, and on our shoot she is full of energy and warmth, a far cry from what some headlines would have us believe.
“The press interest in the show is huge, so I just focus on the work. People can like or dislike me, they can criticise me, but not my work if I do it well.
“It’s like I have two parallel lives – my public life and what really happens in my life. They co-exist but they’re not the same. My real life is when I go for a walk with the dogs or play piano. Whatever noise is out there about my parallel life, I won’t let it spoil real life. This is the message I would love everyone to hear from me – the outside noise doesn’t define your true life.”
While she refuses to let negativity affect her, insisting there’s no point “fighting it”, there have still been some difficult days that “could have gone either way”. “I remember, about a year after the first big scandal, I read some silly online comments and had a breakdown in my car,” she recalls. “I FaceTimed my mum, who was in a gym class and I couldn’t get my words out.
“I was probably looking for sympathy and soft words but my mum knows me so well. She said, ‘Stop crying! Do you think everybody’s going to be nice to you? No. So wipe your tears and go and crack on with your job. You’re good at it and you signed up to it.’ It wasn’t what I was expecting, but it worked. What I needed in that moment was a kick up the a**e from my mum!”
Throughout her years on Strictly, Katya has strived to remain consistent.
“When I joined, I told myself I must stay true to myself,” she shares. “Pretending to be someone else is hard work and I didn’t need that on top of such an intense job. I’d like to say I’ve remained myself, on and off the show. That’s what has allowed me to do it for 10 years.”
She continues to work on herself, too, adding, “I consciously want to be the best version of myself for my friends, for my family, for someone who will hopefully walk into my life. But this year I realised it’s probably time to just live.
“I’ve learnt that I’m in control of my reactions, the way I communicate, what I bring to situations. I trained myself to pause, create a mental gap before reacting, and think, ‘What’s the right thing to do to make myself proud?’ That’s quite powerful.”
Though Katya’s parents still live in Russia, her own life is very much in London, where she loves getting a “family fix” from Janette Manrara, Aljaž Škorjanec and their daughter Lyra, who live nearby.
Her best friend Aimee Fuller, a two-time Olympic snowboarder, ticks almost every other box. As well as sharing a love for yoga, kickboxing, padel and wakesurfing, they share household budgets, car insurance policies and “keep toothbrushes in each other’s bathrooms”.
Katya’s close friendships don’t tick the romance box however, so is that something she’s seeking?
“For the last few years I’ve been so happy on my own. I have passions and things I enjoy doing, but I’m at the point now where I’m so ready,” she grins. “I would love that to happen. Me and Aimee talk about how exciting it’ll be when we both have partners. I feel like I can be really good for someone and I have so much love to give.”
She has tried dating apps, but found them less than successful, with her inbox filling with requests such as, ‘Are you going to teach me to dance?’, as well as a few preconceived ideas about who she is.
“On Strictly, you only have a few seconds to talk to the presenters and I want it to be about the celebrity, not me,” she says. “So someone might think they know me, but they don’t really. They don’t know that I sit in silence and sew or that I love playing the piano. Sometimes it’s nice to show up to a date and talk about who I really am, and what’s important to me.”
Now in her mid-thirties, Katya is looking into the option of freezing her eggs, in case it takes her longer than she hopes to find her Mr Right.
“It gives you that peace of mind so you don’t feel like you’re being rushed. It’s liberating to have options,” she says. “But, you know, I might meet someone tomorrow. Things change so quickly. Maybe we’ll be having this conversation in a year’s time and I’ll be married with kids. So I’m exploring it, but I’m really hopeful I’ll meet someone.
“My parents had me and my brother young, in their 20s, but times have changed. I have an amazing job that I love and I explore the world and travel – I have so many amazing opportunities. So we have to look at the idea of family differently. It’s not a template any more. My parents have been married for 41 years and they still hold hands. I adore it. That’s what I want.”
Although she’s had a lot to deal with in the past decade, would Katya have thought twice about joining Strictly?
“I wouldn’t change a single thing. It’s all shaped me into the person I am today,” she says, before adding with a devilish laugh, “and there are a lot of fun stories for dinner parties!
“I know my body won’t let me dance at this level forever, so I’m already thinking about the future. Judging on Dancing With The Stars Belgium this year was a dream. I loved every second. It felt natural and I realised I can bring something different to the panel, not just as a champion dancer but also from years of guiding celebs as a pro. So don’t be surprised if you see me eyeing up a judge’s chair for good.”
