{"id":518381,"date":"2026-04-07T22:10:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T22:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/518381\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T22:10:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T22:10:11","slug":"arlene-phillips-shares-five-word-statement-on-axed-bbc-strictly-stars-as-former-judge-wades-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/518381\/","title":{"rendered":"Arlene Phillips shares five-word statement on axed BBC Strictly stars as former judge wades in"},"content":{"rendered":"

Arlene Phillips has delivered a message to professional dancers upset about losing their places on Strictly Come Dancing, insisting in a brief and blunt statement that “nothing in life is forever”.<\/p>\n

The 82-year-old choreographer, who herself was dropped from the judging panel in 2008 after four years and replaced by Alesha Dixon, urged performers to develop resilience.<\/p>\n

“No-one promises you its forever. Be ready. You have to be steely in this business. There is a lot of rejection. Live with rejection,” she added to The Sun.<\/p>\n

Ms Phillips emphasised the physical demands of the profession, noting that dancing takes a significant toll on the body.<\/p>\n

\"Arlene<\/p>\n

Arlene Phillips has given a message to the axed BBC Strictly stars<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

GETTY<\/p>\n

She also advised aspiring dancers: “If you can’t take rejection don’t bother.”<\/p>\n

The former judge cautioned against becoming dependent on the programme, regardless of how celebrated performers might become during their time on the show.<\/p>\n

Five professional dancers have been cut from the lineup ahead of the 2026 series. Karen Hauer, 43, who held the distinction of being Strictly’s longest-serving female dancer,<\/a> described her departure as “terribly stressful and emotional”.<\/p>\n

Nadiya Bychkova, 36, Luba Mushtuk, 36, and Gorka Marquez, 35, have also lost their positions on the programme.<\/p>\n

\"Nadiya<\/p>\n

Nadiya Bychkova is among those confirmed to have left BBC Strictly<\/p>\n

| GETTY<\/p>\n

Michelle Tsiakkas, 30, confirmed her exit recently, becoming the most recent dancer to depart.<\/p>\n

Ms Hauer attended the LitPet’s Sunday Dog Social at 180 House on London’s Strand over the weekend with her rescue dog Marley.<\/p>\n

“What’s just happened is part of life and the stresses that go with it,” she said at the event.<\/p>\n

The dancer credited her four rescue dogs with helping her through the difficult period, explaining that they sense when she is under strain.<\/p>\n

\"Michelle<\/p>\n

Michelle Tsiakkas said her ‘dream is shattered’ following her Strictly axe<\/p>\n

| GETTY<\/p>\n

Sources have claimed that BBC bosses considered TikTok follower counts when deciding which professionals to retain, reportedly in an effort to attract younger audiences.<\/p>\n

The disparity in social media presence between those kept and those dropped appears stark in some cases.<\/p>\n

Nadiya Bychkova, who was axed, has approximately 19,000 TikTok followers, whereas Dianne Buswell, also 36, commands 966,000 followers and has retained her spot.<\/p>\n

A similar pattern emerges with Karen Hauer’s 9,000 followers compared to newcomer Alexis, who boasts around 190,000 and remains safe.<\/p>\n

\"Arlene<\/p>\n

Arlene Phillips was axed from Strictly herself in 2008<\/p>\n

| <\/p>\n

GETTY<\/p>\n

It has been reported that dancers with larger online followings were favoured over those deemed less TikTok-friendly.<\/p>\n

Neil Jones, 43, and Nancy Xu, 34, will reportedly not receive celebrity partners this year, though they may still feature in group performances.<\/p>\n

Insiders suggest executives are pursuing a comprehensive transformation of the franchise following a series of scandals.<\/p>\n

“Fans will be stunned that this bloodbath is continuing, but bosses are determined to overhaul the show completely,” an industry source told The Sun.<\/p>\n

The source indicated that neither presenter is necessarily finished with the BBC entirely, with potential roles elsewhere still possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Arlene Phillips has delivered a message to professional dancers upset about losing their places on Strictly Come Dancing,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":518382,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[243,830,96,2331,1598,391,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-518381","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-bbc","9":"tag-celebrity","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-sgg","12":"tag-strictly-come-dancing","13":"tag-tv","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=518381"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518381\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/518382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=518381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=518381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=518381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}