Strictly Come Dancing professional Amy Dowden has welcomed the BBC show’s new hosts Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe.

Amy Dowden has welcomed the dawn of a new chapter, following the announcement of Strictly Come Dancing’s fresh presenting line-up.

The Welsh dancer is making her return to the cherished BBC competition after her remarkable comeback last year.

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Amy was compelled to sit out Strictly while undergoing cancer treatment, following her breast cancer diagnosis in May 2023.

Last year, she was paired with controversial reality star Thomas Skinner, with the duo becoming the first couple eliminated from Strictly.

Now Amy is preparing to return alongside the likes of Dianne Buswell and Vito Coppola, following the departure of several professional dancers including Karen Hauer and Gorka Marquez from the series, reports the Mirror.

Beyond the rumoured ‘bloodbath’ impacting the professional line-up, Strictly has experienced another significant overhaul, with Big Brother presenter Emma Willis, comedian Josh Widdicombe, and Strictly favourite Johannes Radebe now assuming hosting duties from Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly.

Discussing the announcement and the departure of several professional dancers, Amy revealed on Lorraine Kelly’s ITV programme today that it marked the “start of a new era”.

She also hinted at Johannes continuing to dance, after fans were left heartbroken at the prospect he might not return to the ballroom floor in his new hosting capacity.

She said: “I can’t imagine he won’t be dancing. Knowing Jo-Jo and his love for dance, I can’t see him not dancing! I obviously don’t know but it’s going to be all very exciting and the start of a new era.”

Speaking about her close relationship with former hosts Claudia and Tess, she said: “They were there for me since I joined the show and they were for me during all my treatment and everything as well.

“I just think those two were massive fans of the show, they genuinely loved and watched… they were obsessed with it.”

Amy elsewhere hinted at who she’s looking for as a celebrity partner in the upcoming series.

Lorraine quipped: “Last year on Strictly, I was not amused and not happy because you were out first. Nothing to do with you and all to do with who you were teamed up with.

“This year can they just give you a really hot soapstar boyband athlete that you can mould and really let fly.”

Amy replied: “I’d love that. Have a word with them, Lorraine!”

Talking about her return, she went on: “Being back after everything I’ve been through, that’s a win to me.

“But I’d love to at least get to Blackpool, that would be lush!”

Tess and Claudia announced they were quitting Strictly last year, saying their time on the show had been “an absolute dream” but it “feels like the right time” to leave.

They wrote: “We have loved working as a duo and hosting Strictly has been an absolute dream. We were always going to leave together and now feels like the right time.

“We will have the greatest rest of this amazing series and we just want to say an enormous thank you to the BBC and to every single person who works on the show. They’re the most brilliant team and we’ll miss them every day.

“We will cry when we say the last “keep dancing” but we will continue to say it to each other. Just possibly in tracksuit bottoms at home while holding some pizza.”

Tess – who recently gained a Guinness World Record for the longest-serving host of the same dance competition TV show – began presenting Strictly from its inception in 2004, first with Sir Bruce Forsyth, and then with Claudia when she joined as a co-host in 2014.