Amy Dowden has made a triumphant return to Strictly Come Dancing following a mastectomy, chemotherapy, fertility treatment and hospital care for sepsis.
The 34-year-old Welsh ballroom dancer, who first joined the cast of Strictly in 2017, was too ill to compete in last year’s series as she recovered from treatment for stage three breast cancer.
Dowden found a lump in her breast in May 2023 – the day before she was due to leave for her honeymoon in the Maldives with fellow professional dancer Ben Jones.
On Saturday (21 September), the professional dancer moved fans to tears as she danced a classic waltz with her pop star partner JB Gill following her recovery from cancer treatment.
Dowden and the JLS singer performed the moving choreography to the emotional ballad “When I Need You” by Leo Sayer and received a standing ovation from the studio audience.
Strictly Come Dancing judges Shirley Ballas, Motsi Mabuse, Craig Revel Horwood and Anton Du Beke scored the performance 31 points out of 40.
Ahead of her Strictly comeback, the professional dancer told Press Association: “I’m absolutely loving it, JB’s been the perfect comeback for me.”
“I’m just back in my happy place doing what I love most.”
She added of the Strictly live shows: “I think it’s going to be just really lovely because it’s going to be beautiful for my family because they struggled just as much as I did having to watch me go through it.”
Dowden admitted: “Last year’s Strictly was a tough watch for them because it was a reminder of exactly what we were going through.
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“It’s going to be one big celebration, this whole series for me.”
Meanwhile, Dowden’s partner Gill said he felt very connected to the professional dancer just one week into the 2024 Strictly series.
He said: “For me, I think it’s just trusting Amy, she’s the pro for a reason, I trust her judgment.
“We talk a lot, and I think our chemistry is very strong, even from the outset.”
Gill continued: “So, you know, just trusting her decisions, and obviously we will come up with stuff together, and then once we’ve decided it, that’s it, and we go and execute that, so that’s my biggest focus in that respect.”
It comes after Strictly viewers were left “in tears” by Dowden’s return to the programme in the series’ pre-recorded show last week.
Joined by her fellow Strictly professionals, the group performed a medley of songs, including Dua Lipa’s “Training Season” and Jungle’s “Busy Earnin’” and “Keep Moving”, as played by Dave Arch and his live studio band. The routine was choreographed by Jason Gilkison.
“I’m literally in happy tears over Amy’s dance,” wrote one person on X/Twitter.
Another added: “Must be peeling onions after that. Bless you Amy”.
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