'Strictly Come Dancing' Nancy Dell'Olio: 'My popularity scares off men'

Nancy Dell'Olio has said that her popularity has scared off men in her life.

The Italian businesswoman is among the 14 celebrities taking part in the new series of Strictly Come Dancing. Speaking to Hello magazine, Dell'Olio claimed that her profile had caused problems in her relationships.

"I've had a few situations where men got scared of this, but this is my life - if a man cannot cope with all this... My previous partner, he couldn't cope with my popularity. Men sometimes find it difficult to cope with a woman who is the centre of attention," she said.

The 50-year-old, who previously dated former England football manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, said that her current relationship with theatre director Sir Trevor Nunn is on hold.

"Trevor was busy doing The Tempest and I was busy with different things, so we decided that we needed a bit of time to think about it," she said. "The problem was that we were in the public eye too much, which was not our decision, and it was running too fast."

Meanwhile, Dell'Olio added that she is "much more confident" about her body than she was 10 or 20 years ago.

"Confidence has to come from inside you," she added. "There has to be a reason why I've been the centre of attention for the past 10 years in this country. People probably find something very fascinating or interesting about me."

Strictly Come Dancing launches with a double bill this Friday and Saturday.

> 'Strictly Come Dancing' Nancy Dell'Olio predicts 'tough' series
> 'Strictly Come Dancing' Anton du Beke: 'Nancy Dell'Olio looks fabulous'

Watch Nancy Dell'Olio and Anton Du Beke rehearsing: