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Courageous Strictly star Amy Dowden had no sooner successfully battled stage three breast cancer than she'd been struck down with more bad luck.
A foot injury and backstage collapse left Amy with no choice but to withdraw prematurely from this year's competition, despite many predicting she'd be a finalist or overall winner. Today she took to Instagram to issue her latest health update, lamenting: "I'm still truly gutted, I can't tell you."
Amy is due to see a doctor this week and will be earnestly practising her physiotherapy. She has some words of advice for tricky situations to offer her loyal followers. "As I keep saying, this too shall pass," she insisted, before declaring: "Don't get bitter; get better!"
She'd been responding to a fan enquiring about how she "genuinely" was in the aftermath of her traumatic Strictly exit. She spoke from her sofa, where she was joined by fellow pro-Carlos Gu - and he vowed she was already "looking better within herself".
Meanwhile, Amy has a major event to look forward to in spite of Strictly's struggles—the start of the pair's UK tour, Reborn. It kicks off in Birmingham on March 10, 2025, when she'll perform at the city's Symphony Hall, and will continue until April 6, when the final date is held at Buxton's Opera Hall.
Other cities covered include Southend-on-Sea, Bournemouth, Bath, Dartford, Torquay, Eastbourne, Guildford, Bromley, Ipswich, Swindon, Manchester and Liverpool.
Scotland is covered too including dates in Aberdeen and Glasgow on March 18 and 19, respectively.
Amy will also perform in Cardiff on the tour, which is just a 30-minute drive from her home town of Caerphilly.
She expects to rest as much as possible as she works towards getting well enough to start rehearsals for the shows.
However, her "get better, not bitter" philosophy means she's maintaining the same high spirits and optimism that viewers saw her share during her chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments.
She was grinning with excitement as she revealed that she and Carlos are to have their own solo pieces as well as performances together during the shows.
In a recent heartfelt Instagram post, she admitted that the gruelling hospital treatment she had last year left her with "zero confidence", but that she persevered in her bid to get back to her former self.
"I’m so glad I pushed through because it’s what has made me truly happy again," she exclaimed.
"Yes life throws many bumps along the way but I’m ensuring these bumps teach me and push me to become better - don’t get bitter get better. I’ll keep pushing, keep dreaming and make sure I go grab life in every way possible!"
English (US) ·