Dani Dyer has sent a heartfelt message to her Strictly Come Dancing co-stars ahead of tonight's first live show. The 29-year-old was forced to withdraw from the competition earlier this week due to an injury. On Tuesday, she was ruled out of the contest after a fall during rehearsals fractured her ankle. Despite her inability to participate, Dani has extended her support to her fellow contestants.

In a post on her Instagram stories, the mother-of-three penned: "Good luck to all the gorgeous cast starting their Strictly journey tonight. Can't wait to watch you all, so proud and know how hard you've all been working.. see you all soon." The official Strictly Come Dancing Instagram account confirmed the unfortunate news of Dani's departure, captioning it: "Unfortunately due to an injury Dani Dyer is no longer able to compete in #Strictly 2025. She'll be sorely missed and we wish her a speedy recovery."

Dani explained: "I had a fall on Friday in rehearsals and landed funny. I thought I had rolled my foot but it swelled up so badly over the weekend and after an MRI scan yesterday, it turns out I have fractured my ankle.

"Apparently, doing the Quickstep on a fracture is not advisable, and the doctors have said I am not allowed to dance, so I've had to pull out of the show.

"To say I'm heartbroken is the biggest understatement. I am so going to miss dancing with Nikita but will of course be watching closely and cheering all the couples on."

Following the announcement, Sarah James, Executive Producer, BBC Studios said: "Dani has brought so much passion, joy and enthusiasm to Strictly, and her partnership with Nikita was off to the most sensational start.

"Everyone on the show is incredibly sad that she's no longer able to compete in this year's series. We send her all our love and best wishes for a swift recovery, and we very much hope to welcome her back to the ballroom in the future."

Dani's professional dance partner, Nikita Kuzmin, shared his devastation on Instagram, revealing how "gutted" he felt about missing out on performing with her during a live broadcast.

He wrote: "So so gutted to have finished our journey before it even properly started. The amount of laughs and fun we had in this short time was unbelievable! Really loved our partnership and hope that one day we can actually get to week 1 lol but, health is the most important thing," Nikita expressed, alongside a collection of photographs and clips showing their rehearsal sessions and appearance at the launch programme.

Responding to Nikita's post, she commented: "I'm crying again. Thank you for being the best teacher ever... you are the kindest most amazing person. Going to miss our laughs and dancing with you... let's try again one day and sort our team name."

The BBC has announced that Love Island star and West End performer Amber Davies will step in to replace Dani, partnering with Nikita on Strictly Come Dancing.

Before her debut on tonight's show, Amber expressed: "This has been the craziest 24 hours of my life. I've watched Strictly with my family since I was younger and to now be part of the show is a dream come true. I'm going to give it my all and I am sending Dani well wishes for a speedy recovery. I hope I do her proud."