Strictly's JB Gill and Lauren Oakley to 'carry the torch' for injured Amy Dowden

What did you miss?

JB Gill and Lauren Oakley are planning to "carry the torch forward" on Strictly for Amy Dowden after she was forced to quit the 2024 series due to injury.

JLS star Gill was originally paired with pro Dowden in the BBC ballroom contest but she has had to pull out because of a stress fracture, and he is now dancing with Oakley. The pair dazzled on the dancefloor at the weekend, scoring 39 out of a possible 40 for their Couple’s Choice routine to a Bruno Mars medley.

Speaking on Strictly Come Dancing spin-off It Takes Two, Gill said getting 10s on Strictly was the "icing on the cake" after the last couple of weeks.

What, how and why?

Gill and Oakley received 10s from three of the judges for their lively performance, with only Craig Revel Horwood giving them a nine.

It Takes Two host Janette Manrara asked Gill what the marks meant to him, and he replied: "Oh honestly, so much, not least obviously was it the first 10s of the series for me and the highest mark of the series of course, but, you know, there had been so much going on over the last couple of weeks of course, stuff that not everybody had seen as well.

"As it does for lots of other couples as well but when you ride through that and you are able to put on a performance on a Saturday night, and get a great score and of course get the 10s, it's just the icing on the cake."

Oakley also told how the pair want to do "justice" to all that Dowden put in.

The dancer was taken to hospital last month after becoming unwell and this week she confirmed that she had a stress fracture and would have to rest and recover, saying she was "heartbroken".

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Oakley said: "I think leading on from the groundwork that Amy has put in I just want to carry the torch forward as much as I can because she has done all the work. So I want to just do the partnership justice and bring my flair as well to JB."

Turning to the boy band star, she added: "Because you know, you kind of got the best of both worlds, you got to work with a couple of professionals."

JB Gill and Lauren Oakley will dance the Samba on Saturday

This week Oakley and Gill will perform a Samba to Mas Que Nada by Sergio Mendes, and work is already well under way on the dance.

Gill confessed he hadn't been too sure that it would be right for him but that so far it was going well.

"I am pleasantly surprised with the Samba," he said. "I wasn't sure how it was going to play out and I wasn't 100% on whether it would suit me or not. But I have been friends with the Samba all week — we are good friends and I have really enjoyed learning it."

Strictly: It Takes Two airs on BBC Two at 6.30pm, Monday to Friday.

Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One at 6.25pm on Saturday.