Kevin Clifton breaks the silence on Stacey Dooley while he pays tribute

Kevin Clifton paid tribute to Stacey Dooley by explaining to his fans how their victory helped to alleviate the difficulties of his personal life.

Clinging to the Glitterball Trophy she won in December, the three-time divorced dancer opened the first night of her tour.

Kevin, who broke up with his wife Karen Clifton last March and is currently in a relationship with 32-year-old Stacey, said, "In recent years, I have witnessed significant upheavals in my personal life and this has not always been easy.

"There have been a lot of things that have been started. Sometimes I fought. And the times I struggled and was in a rut, I did not know what to do. "

Aged 36, he was performing at a dance show called Burn the Floor in Southport on Thursday night.

Speaking about negative publicity surrounding his personal life, Kevin added, "It's getting difficult and I'm not the best to deal with it.

"But at that time, Burn the Floor intervened again and the producers called me and asked me," Why do not you go home? "So I felt good and I went home.

"And thanks to Miss Stacey Dooley, I can finally say that I am the strict champion after six years of testing. It's a miracle. "

Kevin revealed that he had almost stopped dancing because he had gotten stuck in a rut – but he then received the offer from Burn the Floor, which revived his career.

He said: "Without Burn the Floor, I would not be a dancer anymore and without Burn the Floor, there would have been no dancing, so they saved my career … and prevented my mother from freaking about what . I would do."

Kevin opened the tour with Italians Graziano Di Prima and Johannes Radebe, South Africans.

Introducing the pair, he said: "Give them a warm welcome because with Brexit and all the rest we do not know how long we will get them."

Kevin's first marriage dates back to 2003, with Anna Melnikova, amateur world champion in Latin America. He was 20 years old.

In 2007, he linked with Clare Craze, but they separated three years later. In 2015, he married Karen.

TV presenter Stacey is not Kevin's only dance partner whose relationship collapsed after appearing in Strictly with him.

The reader Susanna Reid, 49, twinned with him in 2013, also separated from her longtime partner soon after the show ended.

Susanna this week denied that her dance with him led to the end of her relationship – a theme among celebrities dubbed Strictly's curse.

But Susanna said, "I call it" strict coincidence. " Kevin and I walked like a house on fire. Strictly was not responsible for breaking my relationship. I am always good friends with my ex and very good friends with Kevin. "

Stacey is separated from five-year-old partner Sam Tucknott at Christmas.

He only discovered that she was seeing Kevin in April while he was taking out his belongings from their home.

The 30-year-old said: "I was getting my things off. Stacey was in the bathroom. His phone is gone and it was Kevin Clifton … "I love you" with a heart of love.

"I caught the phone and I confronted it. She said that she was telling me everything.

Stacey later wrote to her insisting that she and Kevin would not start their relationship until after their separation. But the discovery of Kevin's message left his personal trainer devastated.

He said, "My anger is with Kevin. It's more like a love affair, year after year. My little niece looks at her in the strict sense, but it's so lousy, and I can not start wondering what's going on behind the scenes.

"I have no respect for Kevin. He comes and says that everything is strictly business. He is a complete p *** k. I've been trying to meet him since closing, but he will not do it.

"She was one of the other dancers she had talked to.

"But it stings even more because of its past and its fame. It is an absolute rat without b ****** s nor decency to listen to me. "

While Kevin's parents, Keith and Judy, accompanied their son to Southport, Stacey was thousands of miles away in Colorado.

She filmed in America her new documentary Stacey Dooley and the bounty hunters: The Good, The Bad and The Deadly.

She spent time monitoring the men and women who bring fugitives to justice for money.

On Wednesday, Stacey was seen wearing a navy blue velvet tracksuit and laughing and joking with
crew members.

Two days earlier, she had broken her silence over Sam's claims on Twitter: "Anyone with adult life experience knows that there are two sides to every story.

"Re Sam, I loved him a lot and I wish him only happiness and success for the future."

On Friday, Stacey was again spotted, this time dressed in a beige sweater and holding a cup of coffee.

She liked a message from Kevin on Twitter about his opening night.