Amber Davies and pro partner Nikita Kuzmin will be hoping to lift the Glitterball trophy when they compete in the Strictly Come Dancing final on Saturday.
It would be doubly special for Amber if she won, as not only was she not supposed to be on the series, she came in as a last-minute replacement for Dani Dyer just days before the first live show, but she has also been targeted by trolls during her time on the show due to a row over dance experience. As a result, Amber has been in the dance-off on two separate occasions, even when she was at the top of the leaderboard.
Speaking to HELLO! and other media in a press conference ahead of the final, the former Love Island champion responded to her critics. "We've seen it every single season," she explained, "Layton [Williams] had it, Ashley [Roberts] had it, Danny Mac had it. It didn't come as a surprise, and I've got to say, it's amped up the last couple of weeks.
"From day one, all I've ever felt is support and love, because at the end of the day, it's just an entertainment show. Yes, there's opinions online, and I can appreciate where they come from. I have experience compared to these two [fellow finalists George Clarke and Karen Carney], I'm not shying away from that. However, the love does overshine the hate and I'm so glad that we had an opportunity on the weekend to just say, 'be kind'. It's not life or death. I would like to say that musical theatre is the polar opposite from ballroom and Latin, but people don't want to listen to that."
She added: "It hasn't affected my journey in any way. I felt so supported within the Strictly built-in welfare. At the end of the day, we're in 2025, social media is massive and opinions are everywhere, but I know that I've stayed true to myself."
The 29-year-old was also asked if she had felt targeted because of being a successful, young woman, to which she delivered an incredible riposte to her critics.
© CREDIT LINE:BBC/Guy LevyIn a defiant message, she said: "I have a big platform, I have lots of young women following me, and I didn't know what my purpose was through Strictly, until I realised that I was getting a lot of negative comments for being good.
"I can't believe I have to say this in 2025, but being ambitious as a woman, being confident, having dreams, working hard, does not mean you're stuck up. It doesn't mean that you're arrogant and I want to change that. It shouldn't even be the narrative. I've had lots of people say, 'Oh, I just can't warm to her' and I think it's because they don't want to warm to me."
© CREDIT LINE:BBC/Guy LevyShe continued: "At the end of the day, I come from a small town in North Wales, and I have worked hard because I love what I do, and the fact that I was given this [opportunity], no one was going to decline Strictly Come Dancing as a Strictly fan.
"If you're ambitious about whatever you have, whatever you care for in life, go for it with two hands, and don't undermine yourself to make other people feel comfortable, because that's not what we're here for. We should live for us. Being your own cheerleader and loving yourself is the kindest form of self-love that you could do. I just still can't believe we have to say this in 2025."
© CREDIT LINE:BBC/Guy LevyIn a more light-hearted moment during the conference, Amber and Nikita also addressed their bond as dance partners. "We have a good brother-sister relationship vibe, so we can joke and laugh," Amber shared.
"But there's something about me and Nikita when we get into a rehearsal room, we know when to switch off and start working. Halfway through the competition, I realised that you do trust me on the dance floor, he believes in me and makes me do wacky stuff that I never thought I'd do."
© InstagramNikita added: "Everything came as a surprise from the very beginning, and we took every single moment as a gift. Each week, we got to know each other much better, and from all the hard weeks to all the weeks where we actually succeeded, to [the] dance-off to when we got our 40s. It's been absolutely gorgeous.
"It was very much an instant sibling relationship, where we do tease each other. We do bicker a little bit, but then we actually love each other, we have the most amount of fun. We trust each other on the dance floor, and to see Amber flourish on the dance floor, to see her shine, especially through the last weeks is outstanding."
