AJ Pritchard hints he will wed girlfriend Abbie Quinnen after growing closer in lockdown
AFTER waltzing into the hearts of the nation on Strictly Come Dancing, AJ Pritchard is nearly ready to sweep his girlfriend off her feet.
The ballroom champ and 2020 I’m A Celeb star has been talking weddings with fellow dancer Abbie Quinnen after saying lockdown proved their bond is unbreakable.
In an exclusive chat, AJ — who has been dating Abbie for two years and shares a home with her in London — said: “You know when you see a series like Below Deck or Selling Sunset and there’s a wedding? We always love talking about weddings.
“The other TV shows we like to watch are redesigning houses and we’re like, ‘In our future house we’ll do this’. So we do always talk about things like that.
“We were best friends before we were in a relationship and I think that really hits home that we love spending time together.
“We love doing everything together, to be honest, and it’s been great.
“There has been no downside, there’s been no arguments.
“You see people in the public eye who think they’re couples but it’s more of a social media thing, but me and Abbie, we’re really happy together.”
While they are in no rush to get hitched just yet, they are keen for his brother Curtis to move out of their spare room.
Asked if having him next door has put them off in the bedroom, AJ joked: “No, but the one thing about having Curtis around is that I think, ‘Christ, we need to get another flat — sooner rather than later’.”
The brothers have teamed up with Coca-Cola for its Open To Better campaign. It is calling on people to share positive pledges for 2021, which can be written on a personalised can through its website.
In a bid to appease his sibling, Curtis said of his pledge: “I’m a bit more messy than AJ so I am promising to keep the flat clean.”
For his resolution, AJ has said he is determined to become a runner this year after being inspired by Mo Farah, his campmate in I’m A Celeb.
On his life since leaving the show, he said: “I was back to my normal habits within a second.
“The first thing I did was eat a box of Celebrations, a burger and chips, fish and chips and dessert.
AJ said he lost two kilos during his stint on I’m A Celeb[/caption]“I ate so much food that the next 40 hours after me leaving I did not sleep, which was quite amusing.
“I didn’t really lose a lot of weight in there. I wanted to look like a desert survivor, but honestly I just looked like me. I think I lost two kilograms, which isn’t a lot really.”
His girlfriend won’t have any complaints with his physique, I’m sure.
Take that, Gary
GARY Barlow has moaned life is tough for him because he has to post photos on social media.
The multi-millionaire Take That singer, who my heart absolutely bleeds for, said: “I feel like I’m giving my soul away every time I post a picture of me having a cup of tea in the morning.”
Feel free to avoid posting that then, Gary.
A bit of my soul dies each time I see a photo of someone’s breakfast on Instagram too.
Mabel free to Rome around for new man
MABEL has just flown all the way to Los Angeles but it’s not to see her boyfriend, who lives there, as they quietly split up weeks before her trip.
I revealed in October she was dating actor Rome Flynn, despite her being in London and him living in the States.
Mabel has ended her long-distance relationship with actor Rome Flynn[/caption] Rome has appeared in TV series How To Get Away With Murder[/caption]But now I’m told their long-distance romance ended this month, which was extremely bad timing as it was right before she jetted to California to finish working on her upcoming album.
Hinting at her relationship troubles on Instagram, Mabel wrote: “Learning to not lower your standards and waiting for people to rise to your expectations is the biggest flex.”
Rome, who has appeared in TV series How To Get Away With Murder and The Bold And The Beautiful is launching a music career, had unfollowed Mabel on Instagram after a row but is following her again.
Given she released the song Boyfriend last year about finding a man “to love me better”, I thought Mabel would have her head screwed on enough to not mess around with silly blokes who are wasting her time.
Still, I suppose if it gives Mabel some ammunition for her upcoming album, it will all be worthwhile.
Halsey's surprise
US pop star Halsey is pregnant with her first child.
Katy bold in old gold
KATY Perry was going for gold as she returned to work on America’s Got Talent for the first time since becoming a mum in August.
The American superstar singer chose a classical Greek style metallic gown for filming, six months after she gave birth to daughter Daisy.
Katy Perry stunned in a Greek style metallic gown[/caption]If only all new parents could afford the luxury of a glam squad…
Katy made no secret of her desire to continue working after she became a mum for the first time with her fiancé Orlando Bloom.
As soon as she got back on set she shared regular updates with her millions of fans, telling them that she took Daisy to filming with her and spent hours pumping milk backstage.
Last week she also performed in Washington at a celebration event for the inauguration of President Joe Biden, singing her 2010 hit Firework.
It must make a change from lullabies, I suppose.
Ora's take on Dickens
ANYONE hoping for a bit of nostalgia from Rita Ora's new version of Oliver Twist ought to look elsewhere.
The ultra-modernised Twist, out on Sky Cinema tomorrow, sees Rita playing Dodge, based on the Artful Dodger.
The character of Bill Sikes has also been swapped to be a woman – and she will be seen in a lesbian relationship with Nancy, Bill’s girlfriend in the novel.
Practically the only thing original to the Charles Dickens book is that Oliver’s mum is dead.
Somehow, I can’t imagine he expected to see a version featuring people spraying graffiti and running up walls when he wrote it in the early 19th century.
Hat’s a hot look Jessie
JESSIE J has been around so long, even the fashion from the beginning of her career is having a resurgence.
The Brit, who released debut single Do It Like A Dude in November 2010, said she dug out this outfit while looking at her gear from when she first made it in showbiz.
Jessie dug out her old clothes to pose for a dressy pic [/caption]Jessie, who is working on a sixth album, wrote on Instagram: “Opened some suitcases in my storage from a decade ago.”
After a quiet few years, Jessie will now have to hope her music comes back into fashion, too.
Dani’s lad is a little Chile
WHEN former Love Islander Dani Dyer announced the birth of her first child this week, I’d have put the mortgage on his name being Dan, Danni or Danny.
But the daughter of EastEnders tough guy Danny Dyer has broken with the family tradition and gone totally out there with name . . . Santiago. How exotic.
It comes after a string of viral gags on social media about what she might have gone for, including the tremendously snappy Sammy Danny Pep Jose Kanye Ariana Kimmence.
I didn’t find it too hard to believe.
But in the latest episode of Spotify podcast Sorted With The Dyers, which she hosts with her dad, she revealed the true name.
She told fans: “I know you’re probably all wondering what we’ve called him, there’s been a lot of assumptions going on – some are actually really funny, to be fair – but his name is Santiago.
“I know a lot of people are probably thinking ‘What?’, but yeah, that is his name and I think it sounds nice on the birth certificate.”
She added that she and partner Sammy Kimmence were “So in love with him”.
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She said: “I honestly can’t believe it, he’s finally here, our little boy.
“I never thought I’d meet him. I felt like it was going on and on, but me and Sammy are so in love with him. He’s just so perfect and the feeling is just incredible.”
After the birth, proud grandfather Danny shared the news in typical style, writing on Instagram: “So my baby had a baby. F*** me we needed some joy this year.”
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