Amanda Abbington slams trolls after Strictly exit and begs people to 'be kind'
Amanda Abbington has hit back at online trolls and begged social media users to ‘be kind’ a week after her shock exit from Strictly Come Dancing.
The 51-year-old actress was a fan favourite and was one of the 2023 contestants to score well on the long-running BBC dance show. Amanda was paired with Italian professional dancer Giovani Pernice, 33, and while they impressed the judges week after week, rumours swirled that they clashed behind the scenes of the show.
The duo were absent during week five of the contest due to ‘medical reasons’ but then dramatically quit days later - with an official Strictly statement announcing: “Amanda Abbington is unable to continue in Strictly Come Dancing and has decided to withdraw from the competition.”
Amanda has now broken her silence on her shock exit and has suggested online trolls could have contributed to her decision to quit the show. She said on Boogaloo Radio: "My thing at the moment is 'be kind', it's always been 'be kind'.
Amanda Abbington has opened up following her exit from Strictly Come Dancing (Instagram/boogalooradio)
Amanda was paired with Giovanni Pernice on the hit BBC show (PA)"It's, 'You don't know what someone else is going through, you have no idea what's going on in their life so before you say anything hateful and cruel just check yourself'. It takes so much more energy to be hateful, to be horrible, where you could just not say anything or say something positive.
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"We're living in a world where the laptop and the phone and social media allows you to say whatever you want without any recrimination, and you have no idea what that comment could do to someone – it could push someone over the edge to do something and God knows we have to look after each other."
Prior to her appearance on Strictly, Amanda enraged many when she took a stance on the topic of women’s rights and drag performers taking to the stage in front of children. In March, she sparked fury when she discussed drag shows on Twitter, writing: “Not for babies. And if you think it is, there is something fundamentally wrong with you.”
Her comments were dragged back into the spotlight in August when her involvement in Strictly was announced, with many social media users arguing she was ’transphobic’. Confronting the accusations at the time, Amanda said online: "I need to make this very clear. I love drag. I think it's an amazing form of entertainment and I f****** 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 played Jamie in Everyone's Talking About Jamie, and he was a wonderful drag queen.
"But my tweet back in March 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... 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. And I'm not transphobic... I am a firm supporter of the legitimate trans community."
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