Strictly's Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman break silence on 2024 star's exit from show

A Strictly Come Dancing 2024 contestant pulled out just days before Saturday's live show - and now the hosts have spoken out about their shock exit

Strictly Come Dancing hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have addressed Nick Knowles’ sudden exit from the show.

Telly favourite Nick, 62, was forced to pull out of the live show on Saturday (October 5) after sustaining another injury. Nick and professional dancer partner Luba Mushtuk were due to perform the Charleston to Rain On The Roof from the film Paddington 2 for the Movie Week special.

Nick had already suffered a shoulder injury that left him in a sling, just days after the first live show. But it was reported on Friday (October 4) that the DIY SOS star fell and injured his knee during a dress rehearsal, and is now using crutches to walk.

During the live episode on Saturday night (October 5) hosts Tess and Claudia were quick to speak out about Nick’s exit. They said: “As you can see Nick Knowles and his partner Luba Mushtuk are not here.

"As per rules of the competition, he will receive a bye into next week's show. Nick we are sending you love and wishing you a speedy recovery."

On Friday (October 4), sharing an exclusive video message on Strictly's It Takes Two, hosted by Janette Manara, Nick addressed his exit. Speaking to the camera, Nick said: "So during our first dress rehearsal today, our run-through of the dance number on the stage, unfortunately, I damaged my knee and it's quite painful.

"So the physios have decided that I need to go for an MRI." Luba then said: "Yeah, so unfortunately we'll not be dancing tomorrow but we really really hope that the knee will be better for the next week and yeah, we'll be back on the dance floor.

Talking about Nick’s second injury, a source also previously told The Sun: “It is such a devastating blow for him and he is being supported by the Strictly team. They are sending him for scans and are doing everything they can to make sure he is okay.

“Nick had to fight to make sure he could take part in the first live show after hurting his arm and shoulder and he did so well. This new injury has been a real blow and he is incredibly upset about it.”

Nick previously explained his first injury to his followers on Instagram. He said: “As you can see my arm is in a sling and that’s because my car broke down at the side of the motorway. I had my little boy in the car, so I wanted to change the tyre as quickly as possible.”

He added: “In the process of hurrying to get the wheel off, I managed to damage my shoulder and arm a little. I’m not sure how, but it’s been quite painful.”

This is a breaking showbiz story and is being constantly updated. Please refresh the page regularly to get the latest news, pictures and videos.

You can also get email updates on the day’s biggest stories straight to your inbox by signing up for our newsletters.