Pete and Jowita’s romantic past reportedly started a year before the pair would smooch on stage
Pete Wicks and his former Strictly dance partner Jowita Przystal have sent fans into overdrive with rumours they are dating.
Fans have long suspected the pair, known for their electric chemistry on the dance show, have more than the pro dancer-celeb relationship they claimed to. Rumours only intensified after the Pete and Jowita passionately smooched not once, but three times on stage at London’s 02 Arena last week.
Now, a previously unseen moment suggests their potential romance and “intense connection” spans back even further than Strictly. In fact, the two were spotted getting close to each other before they had even been partnered together on the show.
On Friday (19 September), at a live show of Pete’s podcast, Staying Relevant, Jowita suprised fans by dropping in to the O2 arena for a dance. While moving to the beat, the two kissed three times, sending the crowd wild.
A Daily Mail reporter has since revealed that this was not the first time he’d seen them “getting intimate”. In September 2024, just before Pete was due to make his Strictly debut, he attended the National Television Awards. There, he is reported to have told the Polish dancer that she looked “stunning” before continuing the conversation in a quiet corridor behind the stage.
“He couldn’t help but admire Jowita,” the reporter wrote. Pete is also said to have “placed a gentle hand” on her shoulder. However, shortly after that night, though the pair were spending a lot of time together in rehearsals, Pete started publicly dating former Love Islander Maura Higgins.
His relationship with Maura imploded in February 2025. When leaving a restaurant, Maura was asked by a fan where Pete was, and she responded: “Probably cheating.”
This was after Strictly, and therefore Pete and Jowita’s partnership, ended, but the dancer has clearly remained in his life. After the O2 kisses, his representatives assured the Daily Mail that they were meaningless and nothing happened between them. But a friend of Jowita said otherwise and even revealed the two had been on a date.
“She adores Peter and thinks he is an old-school charmer. Last month he took her on a date to see Oasis at Wembley, and that O2 performance was his idea,” they said. ” They are both free spirits and love having a lot of fun together. She knows exactly how to put a smile on his face and he does the same for her. Their connection is the real deal.”
When the source was asked about whether or not the two were just friends, they said: “ You don’t go snogging your friends. An certainly not three times.”
READ MORE: Where to buy Amy Dowden’s cute and cosy high-street cardigan as fans demand to know
And yet, Pete was spotted kissing a mystery woman in Mayfair just days before his steamy O2 performance. The Towie star has previously been labelled a commitment-phobe and addressed his reputation in his memoir. “To be honest, most of that is true,” he said. “I’ve definitely got a fear of commitment. It’s the standard cliché of abandonment, fear of people leaving.”
While Pete shared a video to his Instagram of him and pal Sam Thompson on stage at the O2, he doesn’t seem to have said anything about his dance with Jowita. She, on the other hand, took to the social media platform to thank Pete for “making my dream come true”.
“Massive thank you to everyone who came to watch, thank you for all your beautiful messages, your support means everything. And last but not least Pete Wicks for making my dream come true.”
The Mirror reached out to Pete and Jowita’s reps for comment.
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.
