The Neighbours legend and his pro dancer partner Dianne Buswell will be given a bye to miss a week of dancing
Stefan Dennis won’t dance on Strictly Come Dancing this weekend on advice of doctors. The latest edition of the hit BBC One show is on at 6.05pm on Saturday (October 11) but the Neighbours actor and his partner Dianne Buswell will be missing from the dancefloor.
A statement from Strictly shared on Instagram on Friday (October 10) read: ‘Due to illness over the past few days, Stefan Dennis has been advised to rest and, as a result, he will not dance this weekend. In line with the rules of Strictly, Stefan and Dianne will receive a bye through to next week when they will hopefully be able to dance again.’
In the caption, they added: ‘Stefan Dennis won’t be dancing on Saturday night due to illness. We wish him a speedy recovery and will hopefully see him back in the Ballroom with Dianne next week.’
The Neighbours star received mixed reviews following his routine last week. He had told the judges he was “petrified” before taking to the stage for the Cha Cha Cha, explaining how it the routine had “stumped” him. And it appeared those nerves may have continued as he left the stage.
As he climbed the steps there was panic as he misplaced his footing and tripped up the stairs. A panicky Dianne caught him and exclaimed: “Golly gosh. Be careful, be careful.” Thankfully the Aussie was unharmed as he laughed off the stumble.
The pair’s dance was called “very good” in places by judge Anton Du Beke. However, he was quick to call out the much-needed improvement if the actor wants to progress. And the comments were echoed by Craig Revel Horwood. He explained the overall dance was “stiff” as he told the star he looked “stompy”. He also called out the timing, before praising the “content” on show.
Presenter Tess Daly was quick to tell Stefan she was sorry the dance “didn’t go as expected”. But Claudia Winkleman said it was “magnificent”. The judges awarded the pair a total score of 17. The decision received a round of applause from the fellow dancers.
The announcement on Stefan comes after fellow Strictly Come Dancing star Alex Kingston disclosed she had womb cancer last year. The Doctor Who actress, 62, revealed to the Independent that she suffered severe bleeding before receiving her cancer diagnosis, subsequently undergoing a hysterectomy and radiotherapy treatment.
Kingston discovered the cancer had developed in her fallopian tubes – with her treatment concluding towards the end of last year, the publication reported. She explained: “I had a major operation. I had to have a hysterectomy, I had to go into radiation therapy, and that took up a huge part of my life.”
She went on: “I had assumed that the way I was feeling was old age, and I just sort of accepted it… I thought, ‘OK, this is what it’s like to be in my sixties.’ But a lot of how I was feeling was to do with my illness. I never went down the cancer road in my head. It was a shock, because I have a very positive outlook on life in general”, she added.
“Even though my body was telling me there was something very seriously wrong, I kept thinking, ‘Oh, I’ve got a bad UTI or fibroids.'”.
It was whilst performing in a production at Chichester Festival last summer, dressed in Tudor costume and knee pads, that she experienced the haemorrhage, the Independent reported. Kingston recalled: “That night on stage, I haemorrhaged. That was really shocking. I just knocked my knees together and prayed that it would soak everything up.”
She shared: “The wardrobe women were incredible. I ran off stage and said, ‘Grab me some pads!’ We shoved some pads in my pants and I went back on stage and carried on. That was how we finished the show.”
Womb cancer affects the uterus and symptoms include vaginal bleeding, heavy periods, pelvic pain and swelling in your stomach, according to the NHS website.
“Despite having gone through all of that – and any cancer is really tough to accept, to steel yourself to go through all of the necessary procedures to get back into health – the minute I had the operation, I suddenly felt like myself again,” she expressed.
She further added: “Womb cancer is really tricky because it is so sneaky. What I would say is, the body does know – and that was the body saying to me, ‘Help! There’s something really wrong.’ It’s so important to seek advice and have a check-up.”
Surgery is often the main treatment for womb cancer, with treatment also tending to include chemotherapy or radiotherapy, as well as targeted medicines, according to the NHS.
Speaking about her decision to participate in Strictly, Kingston revealed: “When they approached me, I thought of that cliche: life is too short. Go for whatever it is you secretly long to do, because if you’re not brave and you don’t do it, it won’t happen.”
Another Strictly star who has recently undergone cancer treatment is Welsh professional dancer Amy Dowden, who returned as a competitor last year, following chemotherapy and a mastectomy for breast cancer. Kingston revealed: “The very first time I met her, it was the day that all of the contestants met the dancers.
“They walked into the room and looked like gods and goddesses. But I went and found Amy and gave her a hug and said, ‘I’ve been through it’. I told her how incredible she is, how strong and brave she’s been.”
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