Strictly Come Dancing contestant Amber Davies has defended herself against accusations of having an unfair advantage after replacing the injured Dani Dyer. The West End performer, who stepped in at the last minute, insists she is a novice when it comes to ballroom and Latin dance.
Davies, a Love Island star and theatre actress, joined the show after Dyer fractured her ankle during rehearsals. Critics have claimed her musical theatre training puts her ahead of other contestants, but Davies stressed: 'Yes, I did train in musical theatre, however, I am a beginner when it comes to ballroom Latin dancing. So I feel like I will be starting from scratch.'
The 28-year-old, who recently finished a run in The Great Gatsby, also revealed that BBC executives had previously told her her dance experience was too extensive for the show. Nevertheless, she was called in as a last-minute replacement and performed with professional partner Nikita Kuzmin just two days later.
Speaking on her podcast Call To Stage, Davies recalled the moment her agent called about the opportunity: 'I said, excuse me? I said, pardon? I said, please repeat that.' She described the timing as perfect as she approaches her 30th birthday, saying: 'Going into my last year of my 20s doing Strictly Come Dancing would be f***ing iconic.'
Davies also announced she will play Elle Woods in Legally Blonde The Musical and is working towards securing a US visa to pursue her Broadway dreams. 'I honestly think I have some amazing angels up there who are pulling all the right strings,' she said.
