By Courtney Eales,Jane Lavender
Copyright walesonline
Amy Dowden couldn’t attend the National Television Awards in person as she was busy with Strictly Come Dancing filming commitments. Her parents went along instead to represent her as she was nominated for two gongs – one personal accolade and another for the BBC dancing programme. The professional dancer is set to feature in the forthcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing. Chatting to Lorraine the previous week, Amy explained she’d be absent from the ceremony due to scheduling clashes. Discussing the NTA awards, she said: “Unfortunately no, the good thing is I’m back on Strictly and we’re recording the launch show.” A film documenting the dancer’s cancer journey was in the running for recognition. Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me is outlined by the BBC as a “Powerfully honest documentary following Strictly pro Amy Dowden’s battle for her health, a future family and a return to dance after a breast cancer diagnosis blows apart her world.” The nod came in the Authored Documentary section. She faced competition from Molly-Mae Hague’s Amazon Prime offering Behind It All, Boyzone: No Matter What, Freddie Flintoff’s show chronicling his rehabilitation following his devastating Top Gear accident and There’s Only One Rob Burrow, reports the Liverpool Echo . Following the former Love Island contestant Molly Mae’s victory, Amy posted her reaction on Instagram. She wrote: “Huge congratulations to Molly Mae on your NTA win. “It’s been an honour to be nominated alongside such powerful and inspiring documentaries. I’m incredibly proud to have been nominated for my documentary Strictly Amy: Cancer and Me. When I made the deeply personal decision to share my recent breast cancer journey, it was to raise awareness, promote early detection and give hope and strength to others going through it.” The 35-year-old added: “An NTA nomination is just the icing on the cake. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who voted and supported the documentary. Your messages, love and encouragement mean the world to me.” Despite not taking home the gong, Amy’s parents remain enormously proud of her. Posting a snap with her mum and dad, Amy wrote: “After this pic my mam just said ‘tonight was fab but the best thing of all is that we still have you’. “You’re still with us! So glad they had the best time”, accompanied by a string of heartfelt face emojis. Discussing her Strictly comeback, Amy told Lorraine: “I’ve worked on my strength and fitness, worked on myself mentally and physically because cancer diagnoses are tough, and I don’t think there’s enough out there about the reality of after the diagnosis and how long it takes to recover.” She added: “I’ve hope to be able to give others hope who are going through a diagnosis as well.” Amy has been candid about her breast cancer experience since receiving her diagnosis in 2023. Fortunately, she received the all-clear in February 2024, though she still requires monthly hospital visits for monitoring. Amy recently informed her supporters that she continues to attend hospital each month for treatment injections. Amy has also received nominations for two accolades at the Welsh version of the awards ceremony for her documentary work. She revealed to fans that she had been shortlisted in “two categories- presenter and documentary”. The upcoming series of Strictly Come Dancing started on September 20. Amy is paired with Thomas Skinner. The confirmed celebrities include Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, Alex Kingston, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Balvinder Sopal, George Clarke, La Voix, Chris Robshaw, Ellie Goldstein, Vicky Pattison, Stefan Dennis, Thomas Skinner, Karen Carney, Ross King and Lewis Cope. Strictly Come Dancing claimed the National Television Award for Talent Show at this year’s event. The previous year’s celebrity participants appeared on stage to receive the honour, with Pete Wicks and JB Gill delivering remarks.
