BBC Strictly Come Dancing Amy Dowden's friend says she 'knows' what star will be like as she 'reaches out'

Amy Dowden's friend Sara Davies has said that she 'knows' how the professional dancer will be right now following her premature exit from Strictly Come Dancing.

The Welsh star made a triumphant return to the ballroom back in September after being forced to miss out on competing in the 2023 series due to undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She was paired with JLS star JB Gill for the 2024 series and they were going from strength to strength in the BBC One dance contest.

But Amy recently "fell ill" and was forced to miss a week in rehearsals and, therefore, the latest live show on Saturday night (November 2). Lauren Oakley stepped in so JB could continue to perform over the weekend in the first-ever 'Icons Week'.

READ MORE: BBC Strictly Come Dancing's Amy Dowden suffering 'terribly bad luck' as injury details emerge

However, it has since been confirmed that Amy won't be able to return to the competition as she recovers from a foot injury and JB will carry on the remainder of his time on the hit dance show with Lauren.

Amy said her 'heart was breaking' as she shared the news and it's now been revealed she is desperate to return to the show before the end of the series in December.

Appearing on Loose Women on Tuesday (November 5) Dragons' Den star Sara was asked about Amy and if she'd been in touch. Speaking on the ITV show, the former Strictly contestant said: "I tried reaching out to her and I know, from experience, when these things happen - and she's had a lot of these things happen, God love her - she just goes into herself. I just know that she'll be a heap on the couch."

She was also asked about the conversations she had with Amy following her breast cancer diagnosis last year. Sara added: "The thing with Amy is Strictly is her life. It's not a job to her. It's her passion, dancing is her life. And she lives for that time on Strictly and taking a celebrity through that journey.

"And to have it pulled away from her was devastating for last year. And I remember having to sit her down as that friend that kind of has to give you the tough love and say, 'Amy, I know it's your life, but it's not going anywhere. It'll be there next year. You need to put your health first. 'You need to go through the chemo. You need to get better. And then you can go and give Strictly your all.'

"I got her teed up feeling, right, 'I can do this. I'm just going to give it my all, getting better this year because next year I can do Strictly.' And then there she was. And you see her every week. Having the time of her life. She leaves her heart on that dance floor. And then a foot injury..."