Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has paid tribute to one of her closest friends, who has died a day after giving birth.
The professional dancer took to her Instagram to mourn the death of her friend, named Bex, adding that she was a pillar of support during her own experiences of chemotherapy – Dowden having detailed her breast cancer journey on TV and on her social media since 2023.
Sharing a reel of images, Dowden said that she had been contacted on Friday (1 May) by Bex’s mother, who told her that Bex had a blood clot on her brain, and just one day after Bex had given birth to a baby boy.
“I still can’t quite find the words or make sense of it,” Dowden captioned an image. “How something like this can happen to someone so fit, so healthy, so kind… a truly good soul.”
She continued: “Bex was the kindest person, always putting others before herself. Even in the end, she was giving – an organ donor helping others right until the very end. She had just given birth to her perfect baby boy the day before, completing her beautiful family with her little girl and her true love, Sean.”
Dowden added that she was currently remembering many of her experiences with her friend, notably when she offered support during her time on Strictly.
“… [You] calming me down before my first day of Strictly rehearsals and you drove to see me and go through everything, making an eight-hour round trip to visit me during chemo and coming to hospital apts,” she wrote.
“My sister said earlier how at Blackpool you were always more worried about me than your own dancing. That was you. Always selfless. Always thinking of others.”
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Dowden received a breast cancer diagnosis in 2023, and has undergone chemotherapy and multiple mastectomies, revealing in November that she required a further mastectomy. Dowden has openly documented her cancer journey online, leveraging her platform of 727,000 Instagram followers to campaign for greater awareness.
Dowden made a return to the BBC One dancing competition last year, appearing in the latest series alongside her celebrity partner, former Apprentice star Thomas Skinner. The pair were the first couple to be eliminated from the series.
It is unknown whether Dowden will return for this year’s series of Strictly, but she has so far not been axed from the show – unlike several other dancers amid a “cast shake-up”.
She revealed earlier this year that the show had got her “through the darkest of times”.
“I’ve been there on the oncology unit when I was having chemotherapy and I’ve seen what Strictly does for those going through really tough times and getting them through the winter months, battling something really serious,” she said. “It’s the escapism of what they’re really going through.”
