When Adam Peaty revealed he had split from his girlfriend Eirianedd Munro just months after appearing on Strictly in 2021, fans joked that the show’s famous ‘curse’ had struck again.
After all, Adam’s obvious chemistry with his professional dance partner Katya Jones had raised eyebrows – not least when they almost kissed at the end of their risque Argentinian tango in week five of the BBC’s long-running dance show.
Russian beauty Katya has famously spent years trying to exorcise her reputation as something of a man-eater., after she had been seen smooching her Strictly partner Seann Walsh as far as back as 2017.
No wonder the tango not-quite-kiss so upset Eirianedd – the mother of Adam’s young son, George – who admitted she felt ‘really emotional’ in the aftermath, even taking a ‘short break’ from social media.
Yet now we know it wasn’t Katya who turned Adam’s head on Strictly, but another woman.
And that is Holly Ramsay, the daughter of TV chef Gordon and his wife Tana – and now the delighted Mrs Ramsay Peaty. Had it not been for Strictly, it seemed unlikely that Holly – who was then carving a career for herself as an influencer – would ever meet Olympic swimmer Adam.
Holly was introduced to him by her younger sister, Tilly, who was also on the Strictly line-up back in 2021 alongside the likes of TV presenter Dan Walker and Dragon’s Den star Sara Davies. Both attended Adam and Holly’s wedding at Bath Abbey last Saturday, unlike Adam’s parents.
Sources tell me that after the Strictly live shows on Saturday nights, there would be ‘mingling’ between the contestants and their families – and that’s where Adam and Holly are understood to have first laid eyes on one another.
Katya Jones performing with Adam Peaty during the 2021 edition of Strictly Come Dancing
The Olympic swimmer married Gordon Ramsay’s daughter, Holly, in Bath Abbey last Saturday
Adam with son George and the mother of his child, Eirianedd Munro. The pair split up in 2022
‘Amid the Peaty family row, people seem to have forgotten how Holly and Adam met,’ says one familiar with the pair.
‘Holly went to cheer Tilly on, then she met Adam. At the time, Adam was with Eiri and you have to wonder if things weren’t in the best place between them. He met Holly, and within a matter of months he had split from Eiri. Just a little while after that, Adam and Holly were dating.
‘There has never been a suggestion that Adam cheated on his girlfriend, but it does seem that Katya was a convenient “decoy” in the situation. There was an assumption that she was somehow connected to Adam’s split when actually there was another woman on the horizon in Holly.’
Needless to say, Adam made no mention of Holly, now 25, in his Instagram statement back in August 2022 when he announced the sad news that he and Eiri had gone their separate ways.
‘We have enjoyed a wonderful three years together, two of those with our gorgeous son George,’ he wrote. ‘Eiri and George, I’m sorry for letting you down. My only interest is for the wellbeing of our family at this difficult time so I ask that our privacy is respected and I won’t be saying anything further.’
Given these events, it’s fair to say that perhaps Holly and Adam’s romance didn’t get off to the simplest start. And things have hardly been plain sailing since.
As I have reported, Adam’s faithful mother Caroline found herself summarily removed from the guest list along with his caretaker father Mark and brothers Richard and James, amid claims Holly didn’t approve of the ‘look’ of Caroline’s chosen dress.
It is understood Holly, whose dad is rumoured to be worth more than £100million, offered to buy her future mother-in-law another outfit, but Caroline refused. Meanwhile Adam, 31, has fallen out with his brothers – with James being arrested for harassment last month after allegedly sending the swimmer messages during the latter’s stag do in Budapest.
The only member of Adam’s family who was present at the nuptials was his sister Beth – a bridesmaid along with Holly’s sisters, Megan and Tilly.
‘It’s such a horrid, messy situation but Adam has his girl,’ says one insider. ‘There are many costs to this romance.’
Caroline was also not present for Holly’s October hen do at Soho Farmhouse, either, even though her mother’s best friend Victoria Beckham was. Adam is also said to be extremely close to Gordon, who views him as another son.
Eiri is said to be furious Adam took Holly’s surname and now styles himself ‘Adam Ramsay Peaty’ – a gesture he reportedly refused to extend to her when George was born in 2019.
Eiri had suggested they give their son both their surnames but Adam said no, according to sources close to her. She has now branded her ex ‘hypocritical’.
‘When Adam went on Strictly, there was no way that he thought he would become part of the Ramsay clan,’ says someone who knows him. ‘Then the most unexpected thing happened and he and Holly are delightfully happy. But there are of course jokes doing the rounds that they are already “cursed” because of their Strictly beginnings…’
