Dr Punam Krishan has become the fifth celebrity to be voted off Strictly Come Dancing during a results show which professional dancer Amy Dowden missed due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Despite leaving the BBC show on Halloween week, the Morning Live resident doctor who is also a GP in Scotland, said she was “proud” of herself for stepping out of her “comfort zone”.
Welsh dancer Dowden, who could not compete on Strictly in 2023 during her treatment for breast cancer, was absent from Sunday night’s results show after “feeling unwell” following the live show on Saturday.
A spokesperson for Dowden, who has Crohn’s disease, said an ambulance was called as a “precaution” after the dancer began feeling unwell.
“She is feeling much better and would like to thank the Strictly family for their love and concern,” they added.
A BBC spokesperson added: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, Amy Dowden was unable to be in tonight’s results show.”
Sunday’s results show is filmed on Saturday night after the live broadcast on BBC One, in which Dowden and her celebrity partner, JLS singer JB Gill, glided their way to a score of 32 with their foxtrot to Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader.
After it was confirmed Dowden and Gill had made it through to next week, the JLS star said: “Honestly, I’m beside myself, and Amy, of course, is going to be so happy.”
Krishan and her dance partner Gorka Marquez faced the dance-off against former X Factor winner Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu following the public vote.
Krishan, 41, and Marquez scored 26 from the judges on Saturday night, placing them joint-last on the leaderboard with comedian Chris McCausland and his professional partner Dianne Buswell.
The pair reprised their spooky tango to Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics while dressed as pirates.
In the dance-off Ward and Xu recreated their dramatic paso doble to In The Hall Of The Mountain King by Grieg, which had secured them 31 points on Saturday night.
After both couples had danced a second time, the judges unanimously decided to save Ward and Xu.
Asked by host Tess Daly about her time on the show, Krishan said: “I am really proud of myself. You know I’ve taken on something that’s so out of my comfort zone.
“The one thing that I’ve very much learnt is to say yes more, and that there is no point in your life when you can stop learning new skills.
“I’ve learnt more than dancing, I’ve learnt so much from Gorka.
“Everyone’s been so incredible and it’s just memories that I’ll take home forever and I am very proud. I’ve made my family very proud, I’m just really grateful.”
Krishan, who is also the resident doctor on BBC Radio Scotland’s phone-in surgery, said her family is “so proud” of her because she had dreamt of taking part in Strictly for years.
She added: “To have one of your dreams genuinely come true is just a surreal feeling. Week after week it’s been incredible, I’ve made friends for life and everyone’s just been so kind, so thank you.”
Marquez said he had an “incredible” six weeks with the doctor and was “very proud” of what she has achieved, adding: “She’s a GP and a mum. She had never danced before and I think she improved week by week.
“I think she is truly what the show is about, someone who doesn’t have experience in the performance world came here and learnt to dance.”
Marquez also said he felt “honoured” to help her represent her Punjabi culture when they performed a dance to a traditional Bollywood song for the first time in Strictly’s 20-year history.
Krishan thanked him “for believing in her” and giving her the “gift of dancing”, adding: “I definitely don’t think this will be the end of my journey dancing”.
Sunday’s results show also featured a Beetlejuice-inspired routine by the professional dancers led by Carlos Gu.
The remaining 10 couples will take to the dancefloor next weekend for the new icons-themed week when Strictly Come Dancing returns on Saturday November 2 at 6.30pm, with the results show on November 3 at 7.20pm on BBC One.
