Greatest Dancer's Oti Mabuse weighs in on Cheryl jealousy rumours
The Greatest Dancer's Oti Mabuse has laughed off recent reports that her fellow dance captain Cheryl is jealous of her, insisting they've gotten along since "day one".
Cheryl sits alongside Oti on the judging panel for BBC One's new dancing competition, and the two women have been plagued by rumours of a feud between them more or less since the get go – something they have both repeatedly denied.
And now Oti has decided to set the record straight once again in a chat with Heat Magazine following the most recent rumours that Cheryl is jealous of her, commenting: "She is absolutely not! I don't think any of us have reason to be. Come on, she's Cheryl!
"And we get on so well. We literally got on from day one, laughing and dancing together. And we have a laugh with our inside jokes, our winking and facial expressions."
Oti also called all the reports pitting her and Cheryl against each other "ridiculous", adding: "As women we understand how it feels to be in this industry – we're stronger when we stick together."
This week's episode of The Greatest Dancer will see the dance captains choose the nine finalists, with each captain getting to pick three acts each to mentor going forwards, and Oti admitted that all three of the judges – herself, Cheryl and former Glee star Matthew Morrison – are "hard-working" and "demand absolutely nothing but the best".
But when it comes to whether anyone has an edge in the competition, Oti quickly pointed out that everyone has their strengths.
"Well, everyone is a professional," she said. "Cheryl does all these amazing concerts, so she knows the bigger picture and how to put on a show. All her performances are amazing.
"Matthew has worked on Broadway – I've never done that. I've been on Strictly [Come Dancing], yes, but with other professionals and with a celebrity who's never danced in their life – I look OK next to someone who's never danced before.
"I know technically how to work with Latin and ballroom couples and produce great choreography, but we'll see what happens."
The Greatest Dancer continues on Saturday (January 26) on BBC One.
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