Alexandra Burke reveals she got therapy to deal with Strictly diva claims

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Alexandra Burke has revealed she underwent therapy to deal with unfounded claims of diva-like behaviour during her time on Strictly Come Dancing.

The X Factor star, 32, competed on Strictly Come Dancing in 2017 and was branded a "diva" amid reports of her behaviour backstage, which she said were "absolute lies".

Unbeknownst to those around her, the Bad Boys singer's mother Melissa Bell was dying of kidney failure in hospital as she competed on the BBC dance show.

Now, in an interview with The Guardian, Alexandra said she was told to "smile more" by her then-management team.

Alex, who broke her silence after the end of The X Factor, explained: "That’s why I let them go. They used to say to me: 'Every time you don’t smile, nobody warms to you'."

Alexandra added: "So to be sat down and told: 'You’re not smiling. You don’t look approachable. No one’s going to like you'."

Meanwhile, Alexandra was facing a barrage of negative stories and accusations about her behaviour backstage of the dancing show, during which she was paired with Gorka Marquez.

During her time on the show, the singer even shared a public message to showbiz reporter Dan Wootton, revealing the negative stories were "mentally taking its toll".

In the statement, she said: "I'm finding it very hard to read all of the lies that you have published about me.

"I've tried my best to just be strong and brush it all off but mentally it's taking its toll.

"It hurts so much to read yet another fake story when all I want to do is enjoy this journey on Strictly."

When asked if Dan had apologised, she explained: "Yes, he did. I’ve known Dan for years. He’s not a terrible person.

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"He explained that, unfortunately, there were people inside the Strictly show who were giving him the stories.

"To this day, I still don’t understand where the stories came from because they were absolutely lies."

Alex added that she had to undergo therapy after taking part in the show.

She explained: "I loved my time on the Strictly dance floor but I’ve had to put the rest of that period behind me and I’ve had to have therapy to do that. I just really encourage people not to believe everything they read."

Now, Alexandra revealed she is still confronted by people who say they are surprised at she is "so nice".

She revealed: "I’ve had it so many times where I’ve walked into a supermarket and people talk to me. The last bit of the conversation is: 'Gosh, you’re not a bitch, are you? We read that you’re vile'."

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