Amanda Abbington's America's Got Talent partner and scary stunt that went wrong
Strictly Come Dancing's Amanda Abbington has enjoyed a glittering career as a TV star, but her life came crashing down around her when her fiance was left paralysed after a stunt went tragically wrong.
Amanda, who has reportedly quit Strictly Come Dancing after suffering 'setbacks', has reportedly exited the BBC competition after missing last week's show. Just a day before they were due to dance, it was confirmed Amanda and Giovanni would not perform that weekend. The Daily Star has reported that she has now quit the show, as a source claimed she is "fed up". As they did not dance last weekend, the pair received a bye to this week, but reports suggest she has quit the show and is out of the competition for good.
Her husband, Jonathan Goodwin plunged 30ft to the ground following a suspension stunt that went badly wrong at America's Got Talent. Instead of landing on an air matress, he was sandwiched between two cars that burst into flames. Weeks before the accident, Jonathan proposed to Amanda. The actress has previously revealed that life has now become normal for her as Jonathan is fiercly independent. So much so, she sometimes forgets that he's in a wheelchair.
Amanda and Jonathan knew it was love at first sight after their first meeting in 2021 (jonathangoodwinofficial/Instagram)But now, in a show of true resiliance, the 51 year old star who has two children with actor Martin Freeman, is waltzing her way on to the BBC dance show, determined to hold the coveted glitterball. But it wasn't that long ago that she was at the centre of a public backlash after she made a series of comments, deemed transphobic. Here we take a look at Amanda Abbington's life after Jonathan's horrific accident, her ongoing support of the daredevil and how she dealt with the abuse she faced over her transphobic comments.
Love life before accident
When Strictly Come Dancing star Amanda Abbington split with her long-term actor partner Martin Freeman she had no idea that her love life was about to become something of a whirlwind fairytale. But five years later that is exactly what happened when she met stuntman Jonathan Goodwin. Shedding the ususal methods of find love, the pair first connected on Twitter in 2012.
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Speaking to The Guardian she said: "We were both in relationships at the time, but we admired each other’s work and occasionally liked each other’s tweets." And despite the fact that they were both in relationships at the time, their close bond became apparent in August 2021 when they were both single. Amanda describes her want to be with him like being a "rat up a drainpipe. I had fancied him for a few years."
At the time their relationship consisted of online chats and hour long phonecalls as they were living in differrnt parts of the world. But when thet finally met Jonathan said that he knew he was going to ask her to marry him. Within 30 minutes of hugging each other, Jonathan popped the question.
Her world turned upside down
Jonathan and Amanda had to face the fact that there was a chance he wouldn't have survived his accident (Instagram)On October 2021 the Welsh daredevil was rehearsing a stunt but unlike every other time of rehearsing, this time, Jonathan fell 30ft to the ground. Instead of landing on the air matress, he found himself sandwiched between two cars while strapped into a straightjacket and the vehicles went up in flames.
Not only was Jonathan left with severe burns but he had broken and shattered bones. At the time, speaking on restaurant critic Jay Rayner's Out To Lunch podcast, Amanda said: "He fell 30ft and lost a kidney, broke both shoulder blades, shattered both legs. Third degree burns, broke his spine and severed his spinal cord and nearly died. Then on the operating table, he nearly died again.”
She added: "He’s paralysed now he’s in a wheelchair. Unless there’s a kind of stem cell surgery or that thing that Elon Musk is designing with the little chip, he’ll be like that forever.” After being told that he may not survive his extensive injuries, Jonathan wanted to give Amanda the chance of being single again - but she wasn't having any of it.
After hinting at his decision when he told her that they had a lot to talk about, Amanda told The Guardian that she warned him: "I said ‘unless it’s about the wedding, then no, we don’t.’ Breaking up never flashed through my mind. I just thanked God he was alive.” And while on Lorraine, following his recovery, she was nothing short of giddy as she spoke about her love for him and the fact his accident hadn't dented their love.
She said: "He's amazing, I love him to bits and he's going from strength to strength. He's got loads of things going on and he's delightful. I forget that he's in a wheelchair. He's fiercely independent, very strong and he is genuinely my hero because nothing phases him. I don't know what I'd do without him."
Dealing with public backlash
When this year's line up for Strictly Come Dancing was announced many people vowed to boycott the show following Amanda's social media comments about a drag show aimed at parents with babies. As part of her comment, she wrote: "You cannot have a penis and be referred to as a woman.” And many labelled her transphobic.
Fans threatened to boycott the show following her comments (BBC Studios/Ray Burmiston)But she has recently posted a video that claims she had made "stupid" and "ill-informed" comments. In the video she also said: "I love drag. I think it’s an amazing form of entertainment and I f***ing love drag queens. I think they’re hilarious and brilliant … it’s an art form and I think there’s absolutely a place for it in the entertainment industry. My son [Joe Freeman] played Jamie in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, and he was a wonderful drag queen.”
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In a bid to clarify her stance that she made about the drag show in March, she added that her comment was: "regarding a 12-year-old who was doing it in front of adults. And it just upset me because I saw a kid, a little kid, a 12-year-old, doing something very over-sexualised. And I didn’t think it was right."
She went on to say: "And that was my tweet. I didn’t associate that with the trans community, nor would I associate that with the trans community, because I think they’re two separate things. I’m not transphobic. I’m not a transphobic person. I am a firm supporter of the legitimate trans community; I always have been."
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