The fifth celebrity has been eliminated from the 2024 series of Strictly Come Dancing during week six, otherwise known as Halloween week.

This week’s results show was missing professional dancer Amy Dowden due to “unforeseen circumstances”.

Welsh dancer Dowden, who could not compete on Strictly in 2023 during her treatment for breast cancer, was absent from Sunday night’s results show despite dancing on Saturday night.

A BBC spokesperson said: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, Amy Dowden was unable to be in tonight’s results show.”

Sunday’s results show is filmed on Saturday night after the live broadcast on BBC One and during Halloween week this week, Dowden and her celebrity partner JLS singer JB Gill, glided their way to a score of 32 with their foxtrot to Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader.

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Dr Punam Krishan has become the fifth celebrity to be voted off Strictly Come Dancing.

Despite leaving the BBC show on Halloween week, the Morning Live resident doctor who is also a GP in Scotland, said she was “proud” of herself for stepping out of her “comfort zone”.

Krishan and her dance partner Gorka Marquez faced the dance-off against former X Factor winner Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu following the public vote.

The 41-year-old and Marquez received a score of 26 from the judges on Saturday night, placing them joint-last on the leaderboard with comedian Chris McCausland and his professional partner Dianne Buswell.

The pair danced a spooky tango to Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics while dressed as pirates.

In the dance-off, Ward and Xu recreated their dramatic paso doble to In The Hall Of The Mountain King by Grieg which secured them 31 points on Saturday night.

After both couples had danced a second time, the judges unanimously decided to save Ward and Xu.

Asked by host Tess Daly about her time on the show, Krishan said: “I am really proud of myself. You know I’ve taken on something that’s so out of my comfort zone.

“The one thing that I’ve very much learnt is to say yes more, and that there is no point in your life when you can stop learning new skills.

“I’ve learnt more than dancing, I’ve learnt so much from Gorka.

“Everyone’s been so incredible and it’s just memories that I’ll take home forever and I am very proud. I’ve made my family very proud, I’m just really grateful.”

Krishan, who is also the resident doctor on BBC Radio Scotland’s phone-in surgery, said her family is “so proud” of her because she had dreamt of taking part in Strictly for years.

She added: “To have one of your dreams genuinely come true is just a surreal feeling. Week after week it’s been incredible, I’ve made friends for life and everyone’s just been so kind, so thank you.”


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Marquez said he had an “incredible” six weeks with the doctor and was “very proud” of what she has achieved, adding: “She’s a GP and a mum. She had never danced before and I think she improved week by week.

“I think she is truly what the show is about, someone who doesn’t have experience in the performance world came here and learnt to dance.”

Marquez also said he felt “honoured” to help her represent her Punjabi culture when they performed a dance to a traditional Bollywood song for the first time in Strictly’s 20-year history.

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Krishan thanked him “for believing in her” and giving her the “gift of dancing”, adding: “I definitely don’t think this will be the end of my journey dancing”.

Sunday’s results show also featured a Beetlejuice-inspired routine by the professional dancers led by Carlos Gu.

The remaining 10 couples will take to the dancefloor next weekend for the new icons-themed week.

Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday, November 2 at 6.30pm with the results show airing on Sunday, November 3 at 7.20pm on BBC One.