Patrons of the BDC - British Dance Council

AMY DOWDEN MBE

Amy started dancing at the age of 8, but it wasn’t until after completing her A-levels she committed to it full-time, making her rapid rise in the rankings all the more remarkable, competing against much more experienced couples. For eight years her path to success was also blighted by misdiagnosis after misdiagnosis of a debilitating stomach complaint which left her hospitalised at least once a month, meaning she missed out on training, key competitions and many milestones of teenage life.

Alongside her partner (both in life and on the dance floor) Ben Jones, she achieved her dream of becoming British National Latin Dance Champion in 2016. They were the first all-British pair to win the championships in over 30 years. Other successes include becoming British Dance Federation Champions, English Closed Champions and Welsh Closed and Open Champions.

Amy joined Strictly Come Dancing in 2017 as the first ever Welsh professional dancer on the show. Undoubtedly, the highlight of her time on Strictly so far was reaching the final in 2019 with celebrity partner Karim Zeroual, where they topped the leaderboard. Other fabulous celebrities she has partnered over the past eight years include Brian Conley, Tom Fletcher and JJ Chalmers to name a few.

In 2019, Amy very bravely announced that she has suffered from Crohn’s disease since a child. She did this in conjunction with the launch of the It Takes Guts campaign run by Crohn’s & Colitis UK which promotes awareness of the disease and encourages sufferers to be open about their illness. For this work Amy won the Raising Awareness Award at the Hello! Magazine Star Women Awards 2019 and in 2023 she received a Points of Light Award from the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street. In 2020 the BBC broadcast a documentary, Strictly Amy: Crohn’s & Me.

In 2023 Amy was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, undergoing a mastectomy and a 3-month course of chemotherapy. Once again Amy turned this experience into a positive by raising awareness of breast cancer and its treatment, working closely with the charity CoppaFeel!. A documentary following Amy’s cancer journey, Strictly Amy: Cancer & Me, aired on BBC One in 2024.

As well as her work on Strictly and her documentaries, Amy has fronted two series of Dare to Dance for the BBC in which she helps people perform a spectacular dance for a special occasion. She is also part of the presenting line-up for Lorraine on ITV.

Amy’s resilience to overcome the physical and mental battles to achieve her dreams are a true inspiration and she is a popular speaker at conferences and corporate events, using her journey and what she has learnt from living with a chronic illness to inspire others. Amy was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the King’s Birthday Honours in June 2024 for her campaigning work to raise awareness around Crohn’s and other inflammatory bowel diseases.

In 2023 Amy was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, undergoing a mastectomy and a 3-month course of chemotherapy. Once again Amy turned this experience into a positive by raising awareness of breast cancer and its treatment, working closely with the charity CoppaFeel! A documentary following Amy’s cancer journey will air on BBC One later this year.

Amy remains a fixture on the dance competition circuit and is also a highly successful tutor. With her partner Ben she runs the Art In Motion Dance Academy in the West Midlands, which has produced several students who have competed at national level. She is particularly passionate about working with children with special needs and learning difficulties.

ANGELA RIPPON CBE

Angela Rippon has been a familiar face and voice in British broadcasting for nearly 60 years. She is an award-winning journalist who has embraced an impressive variety of programmes on both radio and television for both commercial and BBC channels in Britain, America and Australia.

The scope and quality of her work has been recognised by the Royal Television Society who entered her into their Hall of Fame in 1996. In 2002 she was voted European Woman of Achievement and in the Queen’s Birthday Honours of 2004 she was awarded an OBE in recognition of her services to Broadcasting, Charity and the Arts. Angela was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to dementia care in her role as development lead with Dementia Friendly Communities.

Trained as a journalist in her home town of Plymouth, Angela worked for both BBC Plymouth and the ITV station Westward Television before joining BBC National News in 1973. She was appointed the first woman journalist newsreader in 1975 and made two memorable appearances in the Morecambe and Wise Christmas Shows. She was a founder member of the commercial breakfast service TV-am in 1982 and in 1984 moved to America to work for CBS in Boston.

Angela presents BBC One’s flagship consumer programme Rip-Off Britain. She also regularly reports for The One Show and Morning Live, both on BBC One. She appeared in the 2023 series of Strictly Come Dancing, making it to Blackpool and winning the admiration of viewers with her high kicks!

She has presented a wide variety of programmes from hard news and current affairs to quiz shows and magazine programmes for both BBC and commercial radio and television. Titles include Come Dancing; Top Gear, the Antiques Roadshow, Masterteam, Crufts Championship, Holiday Hit Squad, The Holiday Programme, How To Stay Young, The Truth About Dementia, Britain’s Greatest Invention and HealthCheck UK Live, BBC One’s series offering health advice and tips, as well as companionship during the Covid lockdown. Angela was also the voice of the question master on the hit BBC One game show The Wall, with Danny Dyer.