Seann Walsh says he sympathised with Matt Hancock after Gina Coladangelo scandal

Comedian was photographed kissing ‘Strictly’ pro Katya Jones in 2018

Seann Walsh has expressed empathy for Matt Hancock over the scandal involving his former aide, Gina Coladangelo.

Walsh was embroiled in controversy when he was caught kissing his Strictly Come Dancing partner Katya Jones on a night out in London, despite the pair both being in relationships.

At the time, both Walsh and Jones issued an apology, and maintained that it was a “drunken” mistake.

Hancock, meanwhile was forced to resign as UK health secretary in 2021 after CCTV footage was leaked to the press showing him in an embrace with his closest aide, Coladangelo, in his personal office. Both were married to other people at the time.

In a new interview with the i, Walsh said he found himself sharing a lift at Queensway Tube station with Hancock last year. “He probably had no idea who I was, but I just wanted to pull down my mask and say, ‘I know how you feel,’” he said.

He added that he was “probably the only person in the country who could sympathise” with Hancock’s situation and said it is “a shame that it’s probably going to be the only thing I’m remembered for”.

Walsh is about to release his 2019 comedy show, now renamed Kiss, after the scandal. “I wanted a log of this crazy thing that happened in my life, it’s sort of like a diary entry,” he said.

The special comes out at the end of the month and will be available via Walsh’s YouTube channel.