Strictly star Amy Dowden pulls out of this week's show as BBC issue update

BBC bosses have revealed that much-loved Amy Dowden is to miss this week's show with Lauren Oakley set to replace her alongside JB Gill as they update viewers

Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden is out of this Saturday’s show - with fellow pro Lauren Oakley stepping in to dance with JB Gill instead.

Lauren yesterday trained with the JLS star after Amy’s shock collapse at the weekend. And BBC bosses have now confirmed that Amy is set to miss Saturday’s competition.

A Strictly Come Dancing spokeswoman said: “Amy Dowden MBE is doing much better and the Strictly family send her love and wish her well. She is delighted that fellow Professional Dancer, Lauren Oakley, is able to step in for rehearsals and to perform in Saturday’s show for JB Gill’s Couple’s Choice dance. We are all hopeful that Amy will be back to dance with JB next week.”

Amy missed Sunday’s results programme after “feeling unwell” and was taken to Barnet Hospital from the BBC One show’s production centre, Elstree Studios, as a “precaution”, her spokesman said. This Monday (October 28), Fleur East confirmed the news while hosting Strictly spin-off It Takes Two.

JB thanked the public for their support after her health scare during the show. On Instagram, the JLS star wrote: “On behalf of both @amy-dowden and I, I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone for voting for us and wishing us well. We absolutely loved our performance on Saturday night and are so grateful to be through to another week on @bbcstrictly Thank you, thank you, thank you for your support.”

This year, Welsh dancer Amy, 34, returned to the competition after undergoing treatment for breast cancer, including having a mastectomy and chemotherapy. His post received messages from fellow Strictly stars and celebrities. Dancers Dianne Buswell, Johannes Radebe, Jowita Przystal and Nancy Xu, and radio DJ Gaby Roslin, all commented with love hearts on his page.

Former Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison wrote: “Smashed it babes.” sarah Louise Merrygold, wife of JLS star Aston Merrygold, wrote: “Smashed it J Ballroom. Team JAmy smashing it again.” Gill stood alone on stage as the results were read out. He and Dowden escaped being in the bottom two after their foxtrot to Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader.

A spokesman for Amy said on Sunday: “Amy was feeling unwell and so an ambulance was called as a precaution. She is feeling much better and would like to thank the Strictly family for their love and concern. We request Amy’s privacy in matters of health is kindly respected.” The BBC said “due to unforeseen circumstances” she was “unable” to be part of the results show, which is recorded on Saturday after the live show, and airs on Sunday.

An East of England Ambulance Service spokesman said: “We were called just after 9pm on Saturday to attend a medical emergency at Elstree Studios in Borehamwood. An ambulance was sent to the scene. One patient, an adult female, was transported to Barnet Hospital for further care.”

Last year, Dowden found a lump in her breast while on her honeymoon in the Maldives with fellow professional dancer Ben Jones. She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer and, after treatment, in February announced that tests showed she has “no evidence of disease”.

Dowden documented her experience after seeing the impact on others of her documentary discussing her Crohn’s disease, and how it had helped her “accept” her own condition for the “first time ever”.

She fronted the BBC programme Strictly Amy: Crohn’s And Me, in which she spoke about her condition and met other people with Crohn’s to hear about their experiences.

The lifelong condition, in which parts of the digestive system become inflamed, can cause stomach aches and cramps, fatigue and diarrhoea, among other symptoms, according to the NHS website. During the Strictly live tour in 2022, Dowden was admitted to hospital in Manchester after a Crohn’s flare-up.

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