Strictly’s Neil Jones, 41, reveals he and ex-wife Katya ‘never had a baby talk’ – but he didn’t discuss kids until three months after his romance with Chyna Mills, 24

Strictly Come Dancing star Neil Jones admitted he and his ex-wife Katya never talked about babies in their future.

The dancer, 41, also revealed in an exclusive interview with MailOnline that he and his fiancée Chyna Mills, 24, discussed having children just three months into their romance.

He explained that he and Strictly co-star Katya were always too focused on their careers and dancing to consider starting a family.

Neil was married to Katya for six years before calling it quits in August 2019, following her 2018 kiss with her Strictly partner Seann Walsh.

He and Love Island star Chyna welcomed their first child, daughter Havana, in October, seven months after announcing their engagement and just over a year after going public with their romance in August 2022.

When asked about family plans with Katya, Neil told MailOnline in an interview about his partnership with Burns Pet Nutrition: ‘No, we’ve never really talked about children.

“We were busy with dancing and our careers and stuff like that.”

The sparkly-toed star explained that even though he and Chyna only had baby fever for three months, they didn’t expect the pregnancy to happen so quickly.

He explained that when he and Chyna met, they “hit it off so well” and that he now finds it funny how quickly they got into serious conversation.

“I have so many cousins, and when I met Chyna we hit it off so well,” he added. “And it’s so funny that three months later we both got into that conversation about having a kid and we said, ‘Yeah, let’s try.’

‘We never thought it would happen so quickly. We were both over the moon.”

Neil and Love Island star Chyna welcomed their baby daughter, Havana, in October 2023, shortly after announcing their engagement.

Neil is thrilled about his new arrival, but revealed that balancing his responsibilities as a new dad and his role on Strictly hasn’t been easy.

He revealed to MailOnline that he would normally spend the night in London during shows, but now makes the 200 mile journey every night to get back home to Leeds.

The star also explained that he will only be able to see his daughter once a week during Strictly’s 2024 tour.

‘They will be at home because that’s where they feel most comfortable, but if we have a day off they will come once a week if it’s in Britain.

‘So we do have a date in Glasgow, so they don’t come there, but in the UK they come over, meet me at the hotel, and then we can have a day off together and then go home, so at least we get to see each other once a week and make sure everything is going well.

‘It’s good that we have a few dates when we’re in Leeds, so that’s perfect.’

The dancer explained that while he may be in the public eye, he tries to remind himself that his job is to teach people how to dance.

He revealed that life in the spotlight is easier when he thinks of himself as “a normal person who’s just on a TV show, rather than something bigger than that.”

And as for his daughter’s ambitions, Neil explained that he and Chyna will let Havana decide her future publicly.

He told MailOnline: ‘With Havana we both made the decision that we weren’t going to try to hide her or anything like that because I think it’s harder to do that kind of thing than just saying, you know what, ‘This is our daughter.”

“If she gets older and chooses not to be in the public eye, that’s her choice, but we’ll just continue to live and do what we do now and what we love to do.”

In addition to a baby, Neil’s busy household also includes the couple’s three dogs, Crumble, Chorizo ​​and Zara, which he has slowly trained over the past year to prepare them for life in Havana.

Neil recently teamed up with Burns Pet Nutrition to spread awareness about dog training and training raising awareness about the dangers of overfeeding during cold weather.

Their research found that, according to their owners, a third of dogs’ exercise levels decrease in the winter months.

The main reason for this is that dog owners don’t want to walk their dogs because of the weather (20 percent), while more than half claim it’s their dog that doesn’t like it wet and cold.

Promoting the food company, Neil said: ‘Although I always focus on my own fitness, I have to admit that I don’t always do the same for my dog.

‘With the help of nutritionists and behaviorists at Burns, we’ve come up with five great activities you can try at home to keep you and your dog feeling good and having fun.’