Strictly’s Tess Daly fuels Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola romance rumours

Strictly Come Dancing presenters Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have done little to dampen claims Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola are dating.

Rumours began when former contestant Amanda Abbington labelled them ‘the most beautiful couple’ before going into overdrive when they were seen kissing each other on the cheek and generally looking loved-up on outings.

Vito, 31, then added more fuel to the fire when he made a raunchy remark live on air about the 22-year-old former Coronation Street actress, although they have also been accused of creating a ‘showmance’ to win the BBC show.

However, Tess, 54, seemed to hint the pair’s relationship is more than friendship while appearing on It Takes Two with The Traitors’ host Claudia, 51, on Wednesday night.

When asked about the affectionate duo, Tess raised a knowing eyebrow and squealed ‘Oooooh.’

Giving her verdict, she continued: ‘I think with Ellie, she’s just having so much fun.

Rumours have been swirling for weeks Ellie and Vito are more than just friends (Picture: BBC)

The pair have done little to dampen the rumours, with Vito even making a raunchy remark (Picture: ITV)

‘And that’s a part of it for her, because she’s loving every second of the training room with Vito.

‘They get on so well, so it’s not like work for her! It’s like, ‘Yeah, give me another one, I’m loving this.’

Echoing Tess’ sentiment, Claudia enthused about the positive impact Vito was having on Ellie.

She explained: ‘She’s much more confident and he’s done that for her.’

Ellie and Vito have been causing a stir on the ballroom floor with their saucy routines (Picture: PA)

Ellie and Vito have neither confirmed nor denied the rumours (Picture: BBC)

Despite there being ‘clues’ including plenty of complimentary Instagram captions about Vito and Ellie ‘dating’, body language expert Judi James previously insisted to Metro.co.uk they were just friends.

‘They’re the smoulderingly hot Strictly couple who get sweaty, sultry, and sensual out there on the dancefloor each week but is this a romance or a fauxmance? At present their body language signals are saying ‘showmance’, mainly because Vito is trying so hard to suggest otherwise,’ Judi explained.

Vito and Ellie were even grilled by Lorraine a couple of weeks back on her ITV show about their relationship status – but they expertly dodged the loaded question.

Tess and Claudia enthused about Vito and Ellie’s relationship(Picture: PA)

Jumping in, Vito spoke about how close they’ve become and how he now considers Ellie’s family his own.

‘I’ve honestly found that not just Ellie, but her family have become like another family to me,’ he shared.

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Meanwhile, Ellie’s mum Karen previously expressed her view that her daughter has ‘blossomed into a beautiful, young, confident woman’, with the professional dancer ‘helping her focus on her self-confidence and inner strengths’, as well as her dancing skills.

The plot thickens…

It Takes Two airs weekdays on BBC Two from 6.30pm.

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The pair haven’t denied the rumours…