Stacey Dooley’s heartbroken boyfriend reveals she has DUMPED him for her ...

As the ticker tape rained down, Stacey Dooley, the newly crowned queen of Strictly Come Dancing, buried her head in her hands in disbelief and her stunned dance partner Kevin Clifton fell to his knees in delight.

A passionate Paso Doble had mesmerised a record 12.7 million viewers and sealed their victory. And as the breathless dancers embraced, the TV cameras captured the equally joyous celebrations of Sam Tucknott, Stacey’s boyfriend of five years.

He leapt on to his chair by the dancefloor, punched the air in delight and rushed on to the stage to congratulate them – almost knocking over diminutive TV cook Mary Berry, who was also in the audience.

First he bounded over to Kevin, the 36-year-old three-times married professional dancer who had expertly choreographed their winning routines, and attempted to embrace him.

But Kevin failed to reciprocate, instead standing limply in the centre of the stage, and they parted awkwardly. Sam shrugged it off, putting it down to the overwhelming shock of victory.

But four months later, Sam and Stacey are no longer together and Sam has another possible explanation: Was Kevin feeling guilty?

In an exclusive interview with The Mail on Sunday, Sam, 30, last night described his feelings of devastation and betrayal at discovering that Stacey, 32, and Kevin have now embarked on a romantic relationship.

In a string of searing revelations, Sam tells of his:

- Suspicion after Kevin texted Stacey last November, saying: ‘I love dancing with you and spending every minute I can with you’;

- Gnawing doubts about the nature of Stacey and Kevin’s ever-deepening relationship in the run-up to the Strictly final on BBC1 in December;

- Fury at Kevin – who he brands a ‘slippery snake’ – for stealing the woman that he hoped to marry;

The news has cast a shadow over the latest series of the show, resurrecting the so-called ‘Strictly curse’ that has seen 14 couples split amid the sexual tension that comes from training so closely together.

During the contest, Stacey, a beautiful but little-known TV documentary-maker, had won a large following.

In Strictly’s world of glittering artifice, Stacey, who had left school at 16 and once sold perfume at Luton Airport, had appeared genuine and authentic, and was loved for it.

After their victory was announced, and with their arms around each other, Stacey and Kevin paid each other an emotional tribute.

Wearing a stunning black gown, Stacey, who won an MBE last year for services to broadcasting, congratulated ‘King Kev’ on winning after four unsuccessful appearances in the final.

‘You know how highly I think of you,’ she gushed.

‘I think you are the biggest gem. You’re patient, you’re talented, your choreography is second to none. You so deserve this.’

Fighting back tears, Kevin replied: ‘You are so lovely and I just think the absolute world of you.’

But for Sam, a former semi- professional footballer and now a personal trainer, the moment that Stacey lifted the famous Glitterball Trophy marked the beginning of the end of a relationship with the woman he still loves deeply.

Sitting in the kitchen of his brother-in-law’s home in Brighton, Sam is torn between anger at Stacey and his remaining affection for her.

‘I am so respectful of her, but I am gutted and I am disappointed and I feel so let down that she did not have the respect for me to tell me and just come clean,’ he says.

‘I am never going to believe her or trust her but ultimately I respect her. I love her.’ Their lives changed for ever on August 16, 2018, when Stacey received an email confirming she had been chosen as a contestant for the 16th series of Strictly. The couple, who had shared a flat together in Brighton for two years, were overjoyed.

‘When we found out, we came back to the flat and we just danced around,’ Sam recalls. ‘I could not have been more proud of her. It was amazing.’ Strictly offered a golden opportunity to broaden Stacey’s career and appeal to a huge family audience.

‘I pushed Stacey to do it,’ Sam says. ‘I wanted the nation to see my Stacey and what my Stacey is about. I said to her, “You’ve got to do something like this.” ’

Symbolically, Sam cleared a space on their mantelpiece for the Strictly trophy. ‘Right from the start I said it’s going to go there. I always believed in her, I knew she was going to win.’

The couple never discussed the intense pressures the show might place on their relationship – or the notorious Strictly curse – although Sam’s friends teased him about the prospect of Stacey being paired with Graziano Di Prima, a smouldering new Sicilian professional dancer nicknamed ‘The Italian Stallion’. Sam says: ‘My pals were like, “If she gets partnered with him, you might as well pack your bags!” ’

Stacey, however, knew who she wanted as her partner.

Sam says: ‘At the start of Strictly, they go into rehearsals and she made it clear that she really wanted to be partnered with Kevin because he had got to the final four times.

‘They are similar heights. He seemed a genuinely nice guy.

‘At the time, I couldn’t care who she went with. I was like, “Just enjoy it and do well.” ’

Stacey, who grew up in a council flat with single

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