Strictly star Amy Dowden has been praised for her "iconic" clapback after ex-Strictly dancer Brendan Cole claimed she was "not up to" the challenge of the show. Dowden, who has previously spoken openly about being treated for breast cancer, was the first professional to be eliminated in the 2026 series, with her celebrity partner Chris Appleton. "To be a pro on Strictly is a big job and one has to be up to the challenge," Cole reportedly told Sky Vegas, adding: "Amy has not been up to the challenge, in my opinion." Rather than a direct response, Dowden posted a video on her social media which has been praised as a "perfect" reaction by viewers and some of her fellow Strictly professionals.
Miming the opening line from Mariah Carey's track Obsessed, Dowden can be seen blowing a kiss at the camera, adding: "Why are you so obsessed with me?" "If you know, you know", a cryptic caption read, along with hashtags reading "be kind" and "in a world where you can be anything, be kind". Cole's criticism of Dowden's performance continued: "I don't think Amy's been doing a very good job for the last few years and she's been out first for the last few years. One can do the maths on that." He also claimed he could see Dowden "counting in" her partners, a sign to him that the "job has not been done".
Dowden's post prompted followers to jump to her defence, as fans applauded the Caerphilly-born dancer's response, with many leaving words of encouragement, telling Dowden to "keep being you". Current and former Strictly stars also showed their support, including Aljaž Škorjanec, Dianne Buswell, Kevin Clifton and Carlos Gu, who replied "iconic as always". Presenter and journalist Stacey Dooley left gold medal emojis under her post, while previous Strictly cast member and actress, Sarah Hadland, commented "beautiful inside and out".
Dowden made history as Strictly's first Welsh professional dancer in 2017. Then, aged 32, she was diagnosed with grade three breast cancer in 2023, after finding a lump the day before her honeymoon. She has been candid about her experiences of the disease, including having two mastectomies, chemotherapy, and fertility treatment.
The star has also been open about how dancing got her through "the toughest of times". "Even when I couldn't dance, even being able to watch it made me feel so much better as well," she previously said. Dowden first returned to the show in 2024, but an injury to her foot meant she had to leave the competition early.
She was also eliminated first in 2025 after being paired with The Apprentice's Thomas Skinner. Speaking on Strictly's It Takes Two programme, Dowden and Appleton, who lost the dance-off against actor Jaime Winstone and professional dancer Carlos Gu, became emotional as Dowden admitted she was "gutted" their journey was cut short. Dowden said celebrity hairstylist Appleton's confidence had "grew and grew", adding: "I honestly think there was so much more to come." Appleton, who has worked with a host of A-list stars as a celebrity hairstylist, including Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande, added: "I'd literally go out there shaking and there's times I didn't know if I could do it, but I did it.
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