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‘It’s part of my life’: Jayde Adams says she’s prepared for sizeist comments on Strictly

Comedian and actor says she ‘doesn’t take this stuff lying down’ following debut on the BBC dance contest

Megan Graye
Monday 26 September 2022 10:28 BST
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Strictly Come Dancing 2022 trailer

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Comedian Jayde Adams has said that she’s prepared for judgemental comments when she performs on this year’s series of Strictly Come Dancing.

This year, the BBC show returns for its 20th anniversary series, presented once again by Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman.

The show announced its 2022 line-up in full earlier this month, from presenter Helen Skelton to singer-songwriter Fleur East.

The partnerships for each celebrity and the professionals were also unveiled during the launch over the weekend.

Adams, who is an actor, comedian and podcaster, was announced as part of the line up for this year’s show.

In an interview with The Guardian, Adams explained that she was ready for negative comments about her body: “A woman can’t be on television without one of two things happening: either someone saying she’s ugly or fat, or they send her really disgusting messages.”

“It’s part of my life,” she added before explaining that she was “desensitised to it”.

In a recent interview with The Independent, Adams said that Strictly Come Dancing is “everything I’ve ever worked towards”.

She said that the last time she ever danced was with her sister and that while she knew some Strictly fans may think she has too much dance experience for the show, she no longer had a “dancer’s body” and was prepared for the experience to be hard.

“I just think if Ashley Roberts from The Pussycat Dolls can go on the show, then Jayde Adams can go on it,” Adams said. “It’s gonna be hard work for me as it was for [2020 winner] Bill Bailey.”

Read more about Adams in The Independent’s profile here.

Strictly Come Dancing continues Saturday 24 September at 6.45pm on BBC One.

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