BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Claudia Winkleman gives emotional Amy Dowden message
Strictly Come Dancing addressed Amy Dowden's absence at the start of this Saturday's show after the Welsh professional dancer was forced to withdraw from this year's series due to an ankle injury. After missing last week's show due to a health scare where she collapsed back stage this week Amy confirmed she would not be returning due to a stress fracture.
Her dance partner on the show, JB Gill, has now been matched with professional Lauren Oakley who will take Amy's place for the remainder of the series. Starting Saturday night's show, presenter Claudia Winkleman said everyone at Strictly was sending professional dancer Amy, from Caerphilly, “so much love”.
“We cannot wait to see you back on this dance floor very, very soon,” Claudia said to a round of applause. Amy's foot injury and subsequent missing out of the rest of the series is particularly sad for the dancer who was forced to bow out of last year's series due to undergoing cancer treatment.
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Host Tess Daly told viewers: "Before we get started, our lovely Amy Dowden has had to withdraw from this year's competition due to injury so Lauren will be stepping in and dancing with JB for the rest of his time on the show. Speaking on Strictly spin-off show It Takes Two this week Amy said: "I'm absolutely gutted. Unfortunately I have an insufficiency stress fracture, if I've said that right, on my shin. This injury could have happened to anybody. I want to stress it's nothing to do with any previous health scares."
Amy later revealed that watching Saturday's show would be "tough" as she wanted to mark one year since finishing chemotherapy on the dancefloor. She marked the anniversary in an emotional post to social media thanking “those around me who are there for the good, the bad and the ugly”.
Reflecting on the past year Amy said she felt “so proud” of what she has achieved and shared a video to Instagram that showed a clip from the day she rung a bell signalling her last round of treatment on November 9, 2023. She said: “Since 09.11.2023 I made a promise to myself that I’d always go grab life, what @nicknacklou (Nicky Newman) taught me.” Ms Newman posted about her experience with incurable breast cancer and died last year.
“At the time I didn’t know what was ahead, awaiting tests and I guess the hardest part yet the long recovery from what chemo and surgery does to you,” Amy said. “I was a ‘new’ me but deep inside found I had zero confidence. Even until late spring I wasn’t sure I had the confidence to dance again.
“I just didn’t feel like me. But I’m so glad I pushed through because it’s what has made me truly happy again. Although today I’m not celebrating how I imagined and so wanted to.
“I’ve made myself look back on the last year and feel so proud of all I have achieved, and what I would have told the struggling Amy back last December and January what was ahead. But importantly I’m alive and living life to the full.” For the latest TV and showbiz news, sign up to our newsletter.
