Overview
- Former Strictly professional Brendan Cole said Amy Dowden "has not been up to the challenge" and criticised her for "counting in" partners, remarks published on Saturday that focused on her recent results on the show.
- Dowden replied with a measured interview and a brief social post miming a Mariah Carey line with the hashtag #bekind, framing her response around kindness and her role as a teacher and role model.
- Fans and fellow Strictly professionals publicly defended Dowden after her post, praising her reaction and highlighting her charity work and dance academy.
- Cole has not issued a public apology, and a friend told media he is "gutted" by the backlash and upset by the public reaction to his comments.
- Reporters note that Dowden’s 2023 stage-three breast cancer diagnosis and February 2024 news of ‘no evidence of disease’ have shaped public sensitivity to critiques, and her early elimination from this series has renewed debate over how insiders publicly assess performing partners.