Sam Thompson meets girlfriend Zara McDermott’s Strictly dance partner Graziano Di Prima as fans joke his BFF Pete Wicks ‘will be jealous’

Sam Thompson met his girlfriend Zara McDermott’s professional dance partner Graziano Di Prima after the Strictly pairings were announced on Saturday evening.

The former Made In Chelsea star, 31, shared with fans a behind-the-scenes look at his first meeting with the Italian hunk, 29, who will compete with Zara, 26, in the competition.

Graziano and his wife Giada Lini, 32, visited the couple’s London home, with Sam even dressing the dancer in $350 MSCHF rubber red boots.

Fans jokingly compared Graziano to Sam’s best friend Pete Wicks, who bears a striking resemblance.

Sam wrote: ‘I met Zara’s strict professional! I even got it in my red boots! @grazianodiprima you are an absolute legend sir and I CANNOT wait for all the TikToks (why am I so hunched).”

Having fun: Graziano and his wife Giada Lini, 32, visited the couple’s London home, with Sam even getting the dancer into $350 rubber red MSCHF boots

Followers said: ‘LMAO Pete has been replaced’ and ‘Pete will be jealous!’

Zara also shared a selection of photos from when she was first paired with Graziano at dance rehearsals.

She wrote, “SAY HELLO TO YOUR NEW FAVORITE DUO…!!!!! meeting you already has been one of the best experiences of my life… I can already tell that you and I are definitely going to be the best of friends!!! this is just the beginning!!!

“I am so blessed and fortunate to be able to partner with you on this experience, I couldn’t ask for someone better by my side (swipe to see team graziara).”

It comes as Strictly made a triumphant return to TV screens.

Fans were quick to call Zara and Graziano ‘the hottest pairing ever’ when the couple’s were revealed for the first time.

Viewers joked that the Love Island star’s boyfriend Sam has to ‘sweat at home’ as they praised the ‘absolute brand’ partnership.

Zara and Graziano will dance the Cha Cha Cha for their first performance, with the TV personality admitting her nerves.

Big fan: The former Made In Chelsea star, 31, shared with fans a behind-the-scenes look at his first meeting with the Italian hunk, 29, who will compete with Zara, 26, in the competition

‘Pete gets jealous!’: Fans jokingly compared Graziano to Sam’s best friend Pete Wicks (pictured right), who looks strikingly similar to him

Hilarious: ‘Pete gets jealous!’: Fans jokingly compared Graziano to Sam’s best friend Pete Wicks (pictured right), who looks strikingly similar to him

‘I think I’m probably the most nervous in my life. “I’m not a born artist, I’m not an extrovert, so this is the biggest challenge of my life,” she said.

Graziano added, “It’s going to be exotic, Latin and is the Cha Cha Cha treasure.”

Zara made history by becoming the first former Love Island contestant to win a place on Strictly, but insisted she wouldn’t take inspiration from any of her former castmates when the show gets underway.

The TV personality rose to fame after appearing on the ITV2 dating show in 2018, in which her romance with villa lothario Adam Collard became one of the more dominant storylines.

She has since re-established herself as a BBC documentary maker, with hard-hitting revelations about revenge porn, rape culture and eating disorders, earning her a new army of fans – and a nomination for Authored Documentary at the National Television Awards.

She wrote, “SAY HELLO TO YOUR NEW FAVORITE DUO…!!!!! meeting you already has been one of the best experiences of my life.”

Keep dancing! Zara also shared a selection of photos from when she was first paired with Graziano at dance rehearsals

Dancing: Zara and Graziano will dance the Cha Cha Cha for their first performance, with the TV personality admitting her nerves

Exciting: Zara made history by becoming the first former Love Island contestant to win a place on Strictly