She is facing rumours her marriage to fellow Strictly professional Kevin Clifton is all but over.
And amid claims she’s ‘dating’ an accountant eight years her junior, dancer Karen Clifton was seen leaving her home just minutes before her reported new beau over the weekend.
The 35-year-old went make-up free as she quickly exited her property and got into a waiting chauffeured car.
That doesn’t add up: Married Strictly star Karen Clifton was seen leaving her home just minutes before accountant Stuart Wood over the weekend amid claims they’ve been ‘dating’ during a rocky patch in her marriage with co-star Kevin
While still wearing her wedding ring, she was quickly followed by Stuart Wood, 27, who got into a separate vehicle.
The appearance comes amid mounting speculation that Karen and husband Kevin have called time on their two-year union.
The meeting came before reports Karen has now ended their fling.
As they refuse to comment on the troubles, the pair added fuel to the split rumours as they appeared to steer clear of each other after performing on Strictly Come Dancing on Sunday.
The professional dancers were caught on camera standing on opposite sides of the group while the results were announced.
Solo: The 35-year-old went make-up free as she quickly exited her home and got into a waiting chauffeured car
Ring of truth? While still wearing her wedding ring, she was quickly followed by Stuart Wood, 27, who got into a separate vehicle
Feeling the strain? The Scottish accountant looked a tad worried as he was dragged into the Strictly star’s marriage issues
Speedy exit: The 27-year-old got his own car from the star’s home
New romance? Stuart is said to be ‘besotted’ with Karen and hopes for a future with her
Viewers spotted that the couple looked tense during the show, after dancing together in a group performance earlier on.
They have been married for two years and became a firm fixture on the BBC competition after Karen joined in 2012 and Kevin arrived a year later.
Despite putting on a united front during the show, Karen and Kevin have been on the rocks for a year and have been living separately since her tryst with a younger man.
According to friends, they have been putting the ‘show ahead of themselves’ – and even agreed to dance an intimate routine together during Sunday night’s results show.
Hmm: Karen and Kevin Clifton added fuel to the split rumours as they appeared to steer clear of each other after performing on Strictly Come Dancing on Sunday
Putting on a show: Viewers spotted that the couple looked tense during the show, after dancing together in a group performance at the dance off
But away from the cameras, it is understood the pair – who have both been married before – have been under great strain and struggled to keep their marriage together.
The Venezuelan mambo champion was reportedly caught having dates with accountant Stuart in recent weeks.
Meanwhile, it is understood that Kevin has moved out. A friend said: ‘They have been rocky for about a year now, but were still living together until recently.
‘Kevin and Karen’s split isn’t really anything to do with [this], as they were already having trouble.
‘Things are very difficult for both of them, as they obviously have to rehearse together for the Strictly pro dances but they are trying to be civil and professional.’
Representatives for the Cliftons have been contacted for comment.
It’s claimed the starlet has enjoyed several meetings with Stuart, with sources claiming to the paper that the accountant is ‘absolutely besotted’ with Karen and is hopeful they will have a ‘future’ together, despite her still being married to Kevin.
They said: ‘They’ve met up on a number of occasions the past few weeks and are getting to know each other.
‘She’s been telling him that there could be a future together… There is hope for Stuart that they might elope together.’
Trouble: The Strictly Come Dancing professional recently admitted that she and her co-star beau are ‘working on their marriage’, but new reports have surfaced claiming the beauty is romantically linked to Stuart
An onlooker added that the duo appeared ‘smitten’ during one meeting at a pub, adding: ‘Karen didn’t really seem to care who was looking.’
It comes after Karen admitted the duo are ‘working on their marriage’ while attending the OK! magazine Beauty Awards recently.
Karen made a solo appearance at the bash and it came after cracks allegedly appeared within her seven-year relationship with Kevin, due to distance.
He is said to have spent increasing amounts of time in Scotland training his former Strictly partner Susan Calman for the show.
New love? It’s claimed the starlet has enjoyed several meetings with Stuart, with sources claiming to the paper that the accountant is ‘absolutely besotted’ with Karen, despite her still being married to Kevin (above)
Reunited: The professional dancer was joined by fellow Strictly stars Janette Manrara, Kristina Rihanoff and Oti Mabose at the cosmetic award ceremony
Candid: Addressing the claims surrounding her marriage, she said: ‘We’re just a regular couple, we’ve been together for seven years and like any other relationship you have your ups and downs. Nothing is perfect’
Karen, meanwhile, had spent time in London and Manchester ahead of the current Strictly series, in which she was partnered with Simon Rimmer.
Addressing the claims surrounding her marriage, Karen had told The Sun: ‘We’re just a regular couple, we’ve been together for seven years and like any other relationship you have your ups and downs. Nothing is ever perfect, so you make it work.’
Downplaying rumours of a rift, she made sure to add: ‘Everything is fine, it adds a little bit of spark to the relationship and it just means that we care about each other.’
She added: ‘We just need to keep pushing and relationships take work, it’s not as easy as you think, especially being in a job like Strictly.’
Brushing it off: Downplaying rumours of a rift, she made sure to add: ‘Everything is fine, it adds a little bit of spark to the relationship and it just means that we care about each other’
Kevin, meanwhile, is believed to have confided in friends that things ‘aren’t going well’ currently between the married couple.
He touched on the strain between himself and Karen on his exit from this year’s Strictly series, after Susan was voted out of the competition.
Kevin reached out to Karen publicly, as he admitted to the show’s co-host Tess Daly: ‘When Strictly is on I’m not the easiest person to live with. I go a bit mad.
‘So I’d like to say first of all, thanks to my wife for putting up with me.’
Prior to his public display, Karen had previously admitted that the pair’s marriage is nothing like the perfect union it appears and that domestic fights often result in them sleeping separately.
Marital woes: Kevin, meanwhile, is believed to have confided in friends that things ‘aren’t going well’ between the married couple currently
Making amends: He touched on the strain between himself and Karen on his exit from this year’s Strictly series, after Susan was voted out of the competition and publicly reached out to Karen
Emotional: Kevin reached out to Karen, as he admitted to the show’s co-host Tess Daly: ‘When Strictly is on I’m not the easiest person to live with. I go a bit mad. Thanks to my wife for putting up with me’
‘We’re not a superhuman couple, we’re normal, so when things happen, we fight,’ she told The Daily Mail in August.
‘We fight about things like him not taking the rubbish out. He does it more than me but that’s only because I tell him to do it.’
The stunning brunette joined the show in 2012, and met Lincolnshire-born Kevin when he joined a year later.
At the time, he had been married to fellow dancer Clare Craze for six years, but they split that same year. Striking up a romance with Karen, he married her two years later.
Dynamic duo: The Venezuelan brunette joined the show in 2012, and met Lincolnshire-born Kevin when he joined a year later. They tied the knot in 2015
Competition: She had been partnered with Sunday Brunch host Simon Rimmer on this year’s series of Strictly Come Dancing