Strictly winner Joanne Clifton is engaged to boyfriend AJ Jenks as she shows off sparkling ring while brother Kevin congratulates her

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Strictly winner Joanne Clifton has announced she and boyfriend AJ Jenks are engaged. 

The professional dancer announced her exciting news on Instagram, giving fans a glimpse of her beautiful diamond ring. She shared photos and videos of the ring, sparking joy among her followers. It was a truly special moment she wanted to share with everyone.

Joanne, 41, posted a sweet photo with AJ, announcing their plans with a playful caption: ‘Got bored… so we’re getting married. Cheers!‘

Joanne and AJ received a lot of messages from people who supported them, such as Joanne’s brother Kevin and his partner, Stacey Dooley.

Kevin demonstrated his support by sharing the image on his own social media, and Stacey commented with a playful ‘Whehehehheyyyyyuyyyyyyy’ accompanied by heart emojis.

Meanwhile former Strictly co-star Oti Mabuse said: ‘Congratulations jojobear 

Karen Hauer commented: ‘Omg jo!! Congratulations beautiful ❤️ big hug’

Joanne departed Strictly in 2016, but not before winning the Glitterball trophy alongside presenter Ore Oduba.

Joanne and AJ went public with their romance in 2020.

I’ve heard it all before – sometimes love just surprises you! This performer completely changed my mind. I had originally made a firm decision *not* to date anyone within the entertainment industry, but they somehow managed to break down my walls. It just goes to show you, you can never say never, right? It’s a funny thing, love. I was so sure of myself, but they proved me wrong! It’s a testament to their charm, I guess.

I saw AJ perform in the musical about Buddy Holly, and afterwards he invited me for a drink. I really didn’t think we’d be a good match, but we’ve actually been together for almost two years now.

Joanne has osteoarthritis in both of her knees. She received this diagnosis the previous year when she was only 31 years old.

In 2021, she revealed that her knees have become so stiff that she needs a special device to help her get out of the car. She is no longer able to run or jump and has to be extremely cautious when doing housework that requires bending or crouching. She relies on this device to lever herself out of the vehicle.

Osteoarthritis, impacting 8.5 million adults in the UK, occurs when the protective cartilage at the ends of your bones deteriorates.

Osteoarthritis is usually caused by the gradual wearing down of joints. Although the initial symptoms often appear in people over 40, by age 65, at least half of all people in Britain will experience some form of osteoarthritis in at least one joint – most often, the knees.

However, osteoarthritis isn’t limited to older adults. Younger people can also develop it because of factors like obesity (which adds extra stress to the joints), a lack of physical activity (causing joint stiffness and damage), inherited traits, or – as with Joanne – from being highly active.

When Joanne made it to the Strictly final in 2016, her knees were really feeling the strain from all the hard work she’d done training with broadcaster Ore. Their last dance performance included jumping up and down on top of drums.

‘I wasn’t thinking clearly – I prioritized a good idea over my own health,’ she explained to Good Health. ‘After my diagnosis in 2015, doctors advised me to stay away from strenuous activity. But we had been practicing jumps all week.’

By Friday and Saturday, I was having a really tough time. When I think about that dance now, I wonder:

After finishing our last dance, I was barely able to walk to Claudia Winkleman to hear our scores. Even though I was in pain, winning felt amazing!

Joanne finished on Strictly after the last dance of the season, effectively ending her time as a professional ballroom dancer. While she doesn’t explicitly state that arthritis caused her retirement, it seems very likely that it played a significant role in her decision to stop.

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2025-09-29 16:39