Strictly’s Amy Dowden ‘still in shock’ after receiving MBE

Amy Dowden has been congratulated by fellow Strictly Come Dancing stars for becoming a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). The 33-year-old dancer from Caerphilly, Wales, has been named in the King’s Birthday Honors for her services to fundraising and awareness of Crohn’s disease.

Dowden said she was “still in shock” on her Instagram page on Saturday, adding: “I will always continue to campaign to raise awareness and funds for research into this terrible chronic disease.”

Under her post, loads of Strictly dancers praised her. Carlos Gu wrote: “Why do I feel like I too (get) the honor just by seeing this news, well deserved Ames Xx.”

Katya Jones wrote: “Yes Amy!!!!!! So well deserved!!!! Congrats!!!!!!!.” Vito Coppola said: “Wow Amyyyyyy. Dassss. Don’t be shocked because you deserve this and more. We love you,” while Dianne Buswell wrote: “Yes my sister . I have the biggest smile.”

Celebrity former contestants including Good Morning Britain presenter Charlotte Hawkins and Paralympian Ellie Simmonds congratulated her. Simmonds wrote: “Absolutely amazing. Big congratulations! X”

Dowden is a lawyer and ambassador for the charity Crohn’s & Colitis UK and has been open about her own battle with inflammatory bowel disease, speaking about it for the first time in 2019. Crohn’s disease is described by the NHS as a lifelong condition where parts of the digestive system become inflamed, and people may experience severe abdominal pain, severe vomiting, exhaustion, and bloody diarrhea, among other symptoms.

She hosted the BBC’s Strictly Amy: Crohn’s And Me, where she talked about the condition and met others with Crohn’s to find out about their experiences. Dowden suffered a flare-up in November 2021, shortly after filming for Strictly, when she briefly moved in with her celebrity partner, McFly star Tom Fletcher, and his wife Giovanna, while her partner was away.

In January 2022, she was admitted to hospital in Manchester after suddenly developing Crohn’s during the Strictly live tour. Dowden said she didn’t reveal she had it when she joined Strictly because she “didn’t want to be known as ‘Amy with Crohn’s'”. She was diagnosed with this condition as a child.

She also recently revealed that she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer after finding a lump in her breast the day before she went on honeymoon in the Maldives with fellow professional dancer Ben Jones last year.

After a mastectomy and chemotherapy, tests showed Dowden had “no evidence of disease.” She took a break from competing on Strictly last year, but will join the cast of professional dancers for the 2024 series.