Johannes Radebe has broken his silence on John Whaite’s explosive romantic revelations about their time on Strictly Come Dancing.
The South African dancer, 36, has told how he and John, 34, are ‘friends for life’ after they had a ‘beautiful experience’ being partnered together on the 2021 series.
It is the first time Johannes has spoken about about John since the former Great British Bake Off star confessed he ‘fell in love’ Johannes while engaged.
Breaking his silence on John’s comments, Johannes stressed the platonic nature of their connection and told how they have agreed to stay friends no matter what.
Speaking of his upcoming memoir Jojo: Finally Home, he told The Times: ‘We have gone on to have such a beautiful experience together that it would be a shame if we were not friends after all that.
Open: Johannes Radebe has broken his silence on John Whaite’s explosive romantic revelations about their time on Strictly Come Dancing
Rosponse: It is the first time Johannes has spoken about about John since the former Great British Bake Off star confessed he ‘fell in love’ Johannes while engaged
‘What we agreed is that, regardless of what life throws at us, we will always keep [this friendship] going. “We are friends for life,” I always say to him. “I know where you live. You cannot get rid of me.” I still speak to him.’
It comes after John admitted he ‘still loves’ Johannes but said he believes being in regular contact would be disrespectful to his partner Paul Atkins.
He said: ‘I love him to bits and I worship the ground he walks on, but I have to be mindful that there’s more than my own desires to consider here and if it would be tricky for Paul for me to be in contact with Johannes, then it’s a sacrifice that I have to make.’
Looking to the future, Johannes said how he wants a partner as he candidly told how he never used to think he deserved to be in love due to internalised homophobia.
‘I want a partner,’ he said. ‘I want one. I need one. Every aspect of my life is great except for that. I deserve love and I never, ever thought that I deserved to be loved in that way.’
Johannes also told how becoming dance partners with John, in the first ever male same-sex pairing on Strictly, helped his family to accept his sexuality.
He said his uncles now openly ask him about bringing a male partner to South Africa to meet them, while the partnership helped his mother to be ‘confident’ enough to embrace his sexuality.
Although his mother only openly acknowledged his sexuality after his same-sex pairing on Strictly, Johannes said she always supported him when he was targeted by homophobic bullies as a child.
‘Friends for life’: Breaking his silence on John’s comments, Johannes stressed the platonic nature of their connection and told how they have agreed to stay friends no matter what
He admitted he carried around ‘shame’ about his sexuality for his whole life and never spoke about it with his family, but now realises that they never ‘cared’ in the first place.
Johannes also confessed that he initially declined the opportunity to be part of Strictly’s first male same-sex pairing, saying he didn’t feel ‘comfortable’ to step into that public role due to ‘fear’.
In an extract from his upcoming memoir shared by The Times, he said he didn’t want to put himself into a vulnerable position, but was persuaded by Strictly’s executive producer Sarah James to be a part of the ‘breakthrough’.
During Strictly’s 14-week run, Johannes said he hardly slept due to his insomnia caused by stress, but was thrilled when he made it all the way to second place for the first time.
The BBC dance contest first introduced same-sex partners in 2020 when boxing champion Nicola Adams was paired with Kayta Jones, while Johannes and John were the first male same-sex pairing the following year.
It comes after his former dance partner John spoke of falling for Johannes while engaged to his partner of 15 years Paul Aktins, who he is still with now.
Appearing on Lorraine, John told how his heart was ‘torn in two’ as he opened up on why he decided to bare all about Johannes in his memoir Dancing On Eggshells.
John also insisted that he hasn’t written anything in the book that both Johannes and his fiance Paul didn’t want him to as he discussed falling for the professional dancer.
He said: ‘The reason I’ve spoken about that story and specifically where Johannes is concerned and where my partner is concerned – I haven’t written anything people didn’t want me to write.
‘The reason I’ve spoken about that story is to illustrate that life is difficult. We are fragile human beings and that our hearts sometimes can be torn into two.
Fears: Johannes also confessed that he initially declined the chance to be part of Strictly’s first same-sex pairing, saying he didn’t feel ‘comfortable’ to step into that public role due to ‘fear’
‘And sometimes you have to take stock an think to yourself ‘who am I, what my values are and how do I get back to that?”
Speaking of the infamous Strictly curse, John also quipped: ‘How blooming great it is that the gays are getting embroiled in a Strictly scandal… It’s a sign of progress.’
John cryptically confessed that he has made ‘some very big mistakes’ as he spoke about what it was like putting the highs and the lows in his life down on paper.
‘I’ve had a funny little life, I’ve spoken very honestly on social media and television about my struggles in life, the and highs and lows,’ he said.
‘When my publisher said did I want to write a book, I thought it was a good time. I wanted to show people that we’re all human and no matter what go through in life, there’s reassurances that it’s all part of the bigger picture in life.
‘That no matter what happens, we all make mistakes, and I’ve made some very big mistakes.’
John previously admitted that he and his fiance Paul ‘spent some time apart’ after he opened up about his feelings towards Johannes.
In extracts of his upcoming memoir, Dancing on Eggshells, obtained by The Sun, John detailed the depth of his feelings for Johannes.
He described feeling a ‘sense of loss’ after Strictly finished as he would no longer get to see Johannes every day and expressed wanting ‘to be close to him’.
He said: ‘After that final dance, I hung up my clothes for the last time. I felt a sense of loss.
Love: It comes after his former dance partner John spoke of falling for Johannes while engaged to his partner of 15 years Paul Aktins, who he is still with now
‘Not because the competition was over, I was knackered and ready for a break, but because I wouldn’t get to see Johannes every single day.
‘I watched him as he sat on the window sill of the dressing room drinking a glass of champagne, still sparkling in his bright white show dance outfit.
‘I was jealous of the sweat beads as they shimmered on his beautiful skin. I wanted to be close to him… We hugged goodbye, I didn’t want to let go.’
Speaking about the infamous Strictly curse, John added: ‘Johannes knew that [the curse] could happen. He had seen it a thousand times with his dance companions over the years.
‘When you are physically pressed against another man for ten hours a day, things move emotionally… He was being cautious. Strictly has a magical way of revealing the truth.’
Discussing his relationship with his fiancé in the aftermath, he recalled: ‘For a while, Paul and I had to have some time apart. I felt like I didn’t know what I wanted from my existence any more.
‘Paul had moved back with his parents and I thought to myself ‘What the hell are you doing?’ I was making that childhood premonition of growing old alone come true.
‘Fourteen years in a solid relationship with a man who loves me unconditionally, a man who would move the earth to make me feel safe and I was p***ing all over it.’
However, John has said the couple managed to put the issue behind them as they didn’t want to throw away the history they had together and they have now rekindled their romance.
Tested: John previously admitted that he and his fiance Paul ‘spent some time apart’ after he opened up about his feelings towards Johannes, but they have since rekindled things
In addition to the revelations about Johannes, John told how he was not always faithful to Paul after winning Bake Off in 2012 and being catapulted to fame.
He said that there were ‘drunken fondles and experiments with various soap stars and celebrities’ at the time – when he had been with Paul for five years already.
John added that he ‘tested the boundaries’ of their relationship after getting ‘somewhat swept away with it all’.
He told how the fame was unexpected and saw him lavished with ‘freebies, champagne hampers, meals out, holidays, red carpets, parties and a six-figure book deal.
