Sarah Hadland opened up on her relationship with Vito Coppola. (Image: ITV)
After her stint on , has opened up about her partnership with pro dancer and admitted that there was sometimes “friction” between them.
Discussing their dynamic, the Miranda star revealed: “It’s one thing to have other people say, ‘Are you going to do that? Aren’t you a bit old?’ What’s worse is you going, ‘Yeah, I am’.
“Vito wouldn’t accept that from me. It did cause friction at times because I’d be like, ‘I can’t do it’, and I’d get annoyed when he’d tell me to try it anyway… and then I’d do it.”
The Strictly finalist also expressed heartfelt gratitude for Vito’s relentless motivation, telling the : “I’m so grateful to him for that, for his perseverance for his rock solid belief in me, telling me not to limit myself.
“Sometimes I’d feel frightened that Vito believed in me. I thought, ‘I’m gonna let you down’. I think as women you often have that self-doubt. But now I don’t let it stop me.”
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Sarah said Vito helped with her confidence during their time on Strictly. (Image: Getty)
The 53-year-old’s partnership with Vito, 32, was instrumental in her journey to the final of last month, along with comedian , Love Island’s , and JLS star .
Speaking to OK! Magazine in November, Sarah described the entire experience as incredibly “surreal”.
She said: “Every year I have a big group of friends I watch it with, and now I’m in it! It’s mad. It’s simultaneously exhilarating and terrifying.
“Sometimes, you want to get off, have a cup of tea and lie down, but you wouldn’t dream of it because it’s so thrilling you don’t want it to end. It feels like a fairy tale. Everything else will feel like black and white after this.”
Sarah and Vito made it to the Strictly Come Dancing final. (Image: BBC)
Sarah is currently touring the UK with her Strictly co-stars. However, Vito has had to of the tour as he recovers from an injury.
Sarah will instead dance with Celebrity Big Brother star Nikita Kuzmin until Vito can take to the floor again.
Their dancing debut was a triumph and they scooped the Glitterball Trophy when the highly anticipated shows began in Birmingham on Friday (January 17).
Celebrating her victory, Sarah exclaimed on : “We only went and won! Best first night with @nikita__kuzmin @strictlycomedancinglive in @utilitaarenabirmingham thank you for an amazing first night – we love you Birmingham.”
The tour continues until February 9 with shows also in London, Manchester and Glasgow.