Strictly Come Dancing professional Amy Dowden is making room in her home for her fellow dancer Carlos Gu as they gear up for the reborn UK tour.
The 34-year-old, with the help of builders, has been busy converting space in her Midlands abode into Carlos’ bedroom after the pair spent Christmas together.
Discussing her Strictly hiccup and why the pair are taking to the stage together, she shared: "Carlos is the perfect height for me. Same height as my husband, who was my dance partner. It is important."
The title of the tour shares a personal meaning for both Amy and Carlos. The former says she feels "reborn" after her heartbreaking battle with stage three breast cancer.
After tests in February indicated "no evidence of disease", the Welsh beauty has since made a joyful return to dancing.
She shared with The Guardian: "We both feel reborn. Me after my cancer journey and him after moving to the UK and finally being able to – he feels – be true to himself.
"Being gay, he's accepted in the UK, and here he can wear the clothes he wants, be the Carlos Gu that he had been holding back. We've both got a strong story to tell."
Having formed a special bond through the dance world, the new besties decided to spend the last two Christmas seasons together.
Recently discussing his time with Amy and her family over the festive season, he told BBC Radio Manchester: "In China, we don't really spend Christmas. In the past three years, I wasn't really spending because I didn't really understand how Christmas [is] like here.
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INSTAGRAM/AMYDOWDEN)"But then Amy invited me last year, I said 'definitely' and then the family - we spent five days together. And her mum, her dad and her sister, it's just like family to me. We were playing the games, it was like a proper, best Christmas I ever had."
Christmas was no doubt the pick-me-up each of them needed following last year's series of Strictly.
For the first time in two years, Carlos found himself without a dance partner, while Amy's time with JB Gill was cut short due to her collapsing backstage following an injury in week six.
In her absence, Lauren Oakley stepped in to train the JLS star and together, they made it to the final.
Amy says withdrawing from the competition left her "devastated" and while the decision was not hers, she understood why it needed to happen.
Feeling more positive about the year ahead, she added: "Dance is my happy place. And hopefully Strictly will have me back next year.
"After having to pull out this year, I still haven't had that year of being back dancing and feeling truly like Amy again."
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