Strictly Come Dancing's Wynne Evans and Katya's statements in full as joke row explained

Strictly Come Dancing pair Wynne Evans and Katya Jones have been forced to address an awkward moment during Saturday night's live show, which was branded a "joke"

Strictly Come Dancing's Wynne Evans and his dance partner Katya Jones hit the headlines after two on-screen incidents on Saturday that sent social media into a buzz, but they've since explained it was just "joke".

The Welsh opera star, 52, alongside Katya, 35, had just finished their Tango to ABBA's 'Money, Money, Money', scoring their highest yet from the judges with 34 points, when fans noticed what they interpreted as uncomfortable exchanges.

At one point during Claudia Winkleman's segment in the Clauditorium, viewers saw Katya pushing Wynne's hand from her waist - a moment that quickly became a talking point online. Moreover, the BBC Radio Wales host was left awkwardly hanging when he attempted to high-five Katya, who turned away to face the camera, sporting what appeared to be an expression of annoyance.

Following the wide discussion amongst the audience, the pair addressed the situation head-on. Let's delve into the aftermath and the explanations given since the incidents.

Wynne Evans and Katya Jones' joint apology statement

Soon after their performance in the live show on Saturday night, the two took to Instagram to clarify the incidents, posting a video while still decked out in their performance attire and issuing an apology for any upset prompted by their actions.

Katya started off by saying: "Hello everybody, it's Wynne and Katya here. We just wanted to say we were just messing around in the Clauditorium on Saturday night and just want to say sorry. It was a silly joke."

Wynne agreed, adding: "Yes, sorry". He also captioned the post with: "Apologies for this tonight we were just messing around. We really are amazing friends. The high 5's is a running joke. Have a great evening @katyajones."

Katya Jones breaks silence

Despite their apology video, speculation continued on social media as they hadn't directly addressed the moment where Katya moved Wynne's hand away from her waist. In an attempt to quash rumours that she felt "uncomfortable" in her partnership, Katya spoke out in a separate Instagram video on Sunday.

"Happy Sunday everyone," the Russian pro dancer began in the clip. "Now, I need to make something crystal clear. The hand incident that happened on Saturday night was an inside - a very silly, very silly - inside joke between Wynne and I.

"So even the idea that it made me feel uncomfortable or offended me in any way is complete nonsense. It's quite absurd actually. Now, can we just focus on how brilliantly he's doing and what an amazing dancer he's becoming?".

She also addressed the backlash against Wynne specifically, telling her followers that the idea he had made her uncomfortable or offended was "complete nonsense" and "quite absurd".

Katya Jones praises Wynne Evans and their friendship

Following the Sunday night results show, Katya took to social media to rave about her Strictly experiences from the past week, while heaping praise on Wynne for his remarkable dance abilities. Choosing to steer clear of any controversy in her message, the pro wrote: "Another week of dancing ! ! ! thank you! Thank you so much for your kind support everyone! We are so excited for the next dance.

"Every day Wynne makes me smile and laugh, but every Saturday he leaves me absolutely speechless when he takes the dance to another level ! It is soo impressive and I can't wait to create another number for you to perform! Week 5! ! ! Whoop whoop! ! ".

Strictly conducts welfare check

In light of several scandals that have rocked the 2023 series of Strictly, involving figures like Amanda Abbington, Giovanni Pernice, and Zara McDermott's ex-dance partner Graziano Di Prima, the BBC has implemented significant revisions to their duty of care procedures, with chaperones now a fixture in rehearsal spaces.

Additional measures have seen the appointment of two welfare producers dedicated solely to the programme, one focusing on celebrity welfare and the other catering for the professional dancers' well-being. After the recent uproar involving Wynne and Katya, the BBC's welfare team checked in on the pair, subsequently announcing no further action would be needed.

Wynne Evans shares how the scandal has upset him

Wynne, the star of the Go Compare adverts, spoke emotionally on BBC Radio Wales on Monday, telling listeners: "I'm absolutely heartbroken by the things that have been written about me in the last day."

He took the opportunity to assure everyone that there are no issues between him and Katya, whom he described as a "really good friend". He said during the broadcast: "It's not nice to live in that time, but basically Katya and I are really, really close and we're really good friends, and on Saturday night we made a stupid joke. It was a stupid joke that went wrong, OK? We thought it was funny. It wasn't funny. It was been totally misinterpreted."

Wynne further added: "Everything's on Katya's socials. She's talked about it. She's explained that it was a joke. She wasn't offended in the least. She doesn't feel uncomfortable.

"We've got a brilliant friendship, an absolutely tight friendship, and I'm sorry if anybody was offended by it, but it was a joke. And that's all there is. There is no real story, really."