Tom Fletcher says Amy Dowden 'has already won Strictly'
Watch Tom Fletcher says Amy Dowden 'has already won Strictly'
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Tom Fletcher has claimed Amy Dowden has already won this year's Strictly Come Dancing, just two weeks into the live shows.
Dowden returned to the BBC contest this season after having a year off while she was in treatment for breast cancer, and has been named one of the bookies' favourites to win with her celebrity partner, JLS star JB Gill.
McFly singer Fletcher, who danced with Dowden in the 2021 series, told Lorraine why he believed she was already the champion and talked about their chance pairing leading to her cancer diagnosis.
What, how, and why?
Strictly Come dancing has only just aired its first dance off, but Tom Fletcher says he already knows who the winner is - his former partner Amy Dowden.
McFly singer Fletcher danced with Dowden in the 2021 series and the pair have stayed close friends since meeting on the BBC show.
This year, Dowden made her return to the ballroom with JLS star JB Gill after taking last season off while she was in treatment for breast cancer, and Fletcher told ITV's Lorraine that he knew they were the winners.
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Talking about his friendship with Dowden, he said: "We speak all the time, I'm so lucky that I got partnered with Amy. She's so lovely and I cannot tell you how amazing it is to see her back on that dancefloor where she belongs.
"I keep saying to her, no matter what happens in the show, she's already won now by being back on Strictly where she belongs with an amazing partner and I couldn't be more proud of her."
Fletcher and Dowden finished in seventh place in the 2021 series, and her highest place so far was second with Karim Zeroual in the 2019 series.
What else did Tom Fletcher say about Amy Dowden?
Earlier in Tuesday's Lorraine, Fletcher also joined Maren Hallenga to talk about the Coppafeel charity that she had founded with her twin Kris, who died of breast cancer in May.
Kris had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer at just 23 years old and spent the next 15 years raising awareness about the disease with younger women through Coppafeel. The charity regularly runs fundraising treks that have attracted celebrity support, including from Fletcher's wife Giovanna.
Dowden joined Fletcher and his wife Giovanna on a Coppafeel trek after becoming friends with them on Strictly, and has credited the stories she heard from others doing the charity challenge with prompting her to check her own breasts - leading to her cancer diagnosis.
Speaking to Maren about documentary Living Every Second: The Kris Hallenga Story which airs on BBC Two tonight, Fletcher said of Coppafeel: "The treks that they do are amazing. I've been on one of them and it was absolutely incredible, the people that are on it and the stories that they shared.
"They literally save lives, as we've seen with one of our best friends, Amy Dowden. She only discovered her own breast cancer through going on a trek with Coppafeel."
Dowden shared the incredible story of how her chance pairing with Fletcher led to her diagnosis when she appeared on Loose Women in October 2023.
She said that the trip made her think "I’m here raising awareness and I don’t even check myself".
The dancer added: "So potentially, Coppafeel and the Fletchers and Strictly partnering me with the Fletchers has now saved my life."
Lorraine airs on ITV1 at 9am on weekdays.
This article originally appeared on Yahoo TV UK at https://uk.news.yahoo.com/tom-fletcher-amy-dowden-already-won-strictly-094201508.html
