BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Pete Wicks' cryptic remark on 'cutting romance short'

BBC Strictly Come Dancing star Pete Wicks has often fuelled the rumour mill when it comes to romance, but he's made a bold statement on when he knows he should 'cut things short'

Reality TV star Pete Wicks has been training hard ahead of his debut on Strictly Come Dancing.

The former The Only Way Is Essex cast member, who turned his Staying Relevant podcast with Sam Thompson into a sell out tour, has been paired up with professional Jowita Przystal on the show and was pictured looking exhausted after a ten-hour training session together.

But after seeing Pete, 36, downplaying his dance skills on the launch, some Strictly fans thought he was bluffing when he asked: 'What's a paso doble?', referring to his first dance in the contest.

"Strictly, it's a whole new world because I have absolutely zero rhythm," insisted the star. "But I love a challenge."

Away from Strictly, Pete is a 'single dog dad' with a loveable persona and he says he is ruthless when it comes to ending relationships. "Unless there's a future in it, I cut it short pretty sharpish," the star told Ok magazine.

"I don't understand people that are in three-month relationships all the time. They fall in love every week. I think you're wasting a lot of time."

Pete has previously been linked with ex-Towie stars Jessica Wright and Chloe Sims, as well as Love Island's Megan Barton Hanson. He says he's happy being 'Cool Uncle Pete' to his friends with kids until he finds his perfect match - and he isn't stressing about it.

"Everything you do in life is better when you share it with someone you love," he said. "And I would love to find the right person and get married and do all that sort of stuff, but if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. I'm quite happy on my own. So I'm not craving or desperate for it."

When it comes to Strictly, despite fans thinking he might be a secretly a talented dancer, Pete insists he just wants to get past week two. "I think people's opinion of me is that I'm overly confident but this is going to be the most vulnerable I have ever been and I am petrified," he said.

The star was spotted getting on famously with fellow Strictly recruit Sam Quek at the cast hotel, sharing a joke as they hung out wine glasses in hand. Olympian Sam is partnered up with Nikita Kuzmin, who reached the final of the show last year with Layton Williams.

Cheeky Pete also took a light hearted swipe at EastEnders actor Jamie Borthwick, another contender on this year's show. He told host Claudia Winkleman: "I am in for a penny, in for a pound. I'm never going to be here again, unless I'm Jamie," referring to the actor winning the show's Christmas special.