The truth about Nadiya Bychkova’s Strictly sacking: Axe had nothing to do with ageism, ‘uncompromising’ star was unpopular with BBC bosses – and her friendship with Dan Walker was ‘a problem’

Nadiya Bychkova has been sacked from Strictly Come Dancing after falling out of favor with bosses due to her affair with fellow pro Kai Widdrington, backstage tantrums and her friendship with Dan Walker.

Insiders have told the Daily Mail that the 36-year-old Ukrainian-born dancer lost her place on the BBC One show ‘way off the mark’ due to her age.

The real reason Nadiya’s time on Strictly is over mostly has to do with her behavior away from the dance floor.

While her diva-like outbursts behind the camera infuriated her co-stars, her split from 30-year-old Kai caused unwanted tension among professionals who found it ‘weird’ to be in their company.

Their two-year relationship did not go down well with bosses, who sought to include the exes in the pros’ ranks to maintain harmony within the group.

Additionally, BBC chiefs felt that her relationship with married father-of-three Dan brought unwanted attention to the programme.

Nadiya is known in Strictly circles as being “uncompromising” behind the scenes and did not react well as she believed that she was one of the show’s most popular stars due to not having a celebrity partner in the 2023 series and made this known to all concerned.

But he earned a deferment the following year when he was paired with Team GB swimmer Tom Dean, and will compete in 2025 with former England rugby captain Chris Robshaw.

Despite dancing with two athletes, Nadiya had two disappointing early exits, finishing 15th and 13th respectively, and her poor performance did not go unnoticed by the bosses.

The truth is that Nadiya was very unpopular with BBC bosses, who frowned upon her two-year relationship with fellow dancer Kai Widdrington because their breakup was uncomfortable.

And BBC chiefs were not fans of the former BBC star’s (pictured) friendship with married Strictly co-star Dan Walker as they felt it brought unwelcome scrutiny to the programme.

An insider said: ‘It’s definitely a light entertainment programme, but it needs to be competitive otherwise it won’t work.

‘Managers want the pros to treat the show like a sport and get the best results from their partners without going overboard and of course avoiding the bullying scandals that have marred the show in recent years.

‘But Nadiya’s last three outings with a celebrity partner (including Matt Goss) have resulted in no threes; in fact, he didn’t even crack the top 10 with any of them.

‘So to keep standards high, we hope that whoever replaces Nadiya in the squad will achieve better results.’

Nadiya’s best finish was 5th in 2021 with former BBC Breakfast presenter Dan Walker (48).

The pair became close while competing on the series and, as is usual in the modern world of Strictly, regularly appeared in each other’s social media posts to garner votes.

However, their ongoing devoted friendship has become the talk of ‘Strictly’, given that Dan has been married to his wife Sarah for 25 years but is still gushing over his former dance partner five years after they performed together on the BBC show, with Nadiya equally complimentary.

Last June, the Daily Mail revealed that Dan had returned from a family holiday to present an awards ceremony at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House in London, which Nadiya was also to attend, but stood down as soon as he finished proceedings, causing even more eyebrows to be raised.

Sources revealed Dan, who name-checked Nadiya multiple times during the TRIC Awards presentation, acted like her ‘Instagram husband’, taking the time to capture the star from her best angles with a ring light, before continuing their night together at an intimate after party held at the 5-star hotel’s Red Bar.

The father-of-three, who has a strong Christian faith, told how he flew to the capital from Nice, France, leaving his family and wife Sarah to keep up with work duties and catching a 6am flight back to continue spending quality time together.

This was another example of how their friendship irritated show bosses.

A separate show source said: ‘Nadiya’s relationship with Dan is still at loggerheads with many executives, making them uncomfortable and triggering unnecessary attention.

‘It’s not a good look for either of them, but since Nadiya is still linked to the show, she has more to lose by ostensibly flaunting this intimate connection. Their friendship started to become a problem.’

Nadiya’s shock exit as part of a major shake-up was confirmed on Sunday.

The mother-of-one was ousted along with long-time incumbent Gorka Marquez, 35, Luba Mushtuk, 36, and relative newcomer Michelle Tsiakas, 30.

Producers are believed to want a ‘fresh start’ for BBC One’s juggernaut 2026 series after years of scandal; The series will also feature new hosts after Tess Daley and Claudia Winkleman left their roles last October.

Given that Nadiya, Gorka and Luba were in their mid-thirties, the trio’s dismissal sparked an ageism controversy.

But insiders say older dancers are valued more by bosses, given they have more followers.

The source said: ‘Audiences love older dancers and showrunners, they are very aware of that.

Despite dancing with two athletes, including TeamGB swimmer Tom Dean, Nadiya had two disappointing early starts, finishing 15th and 13th, and her poor performances attracted attention.

‘They love the familiarity and how they adapt to different celebrities every year.

‘Anton De Beke competed in his 50s before becoming a judge and Johannes Radebe, Dianna Buswell, Lauren Oakley and Katya Jones are all in their mid to late 30s and all look set to stay.’

The source added: ‘It’s just a case of freshening things up but adding a few new additions.

‘But what this proves is that, more than ever, the pros need to be on their best behavior if they want to stay in the programme.’