Live updates from Strictly Come Dancing Icons Week as Amy Dowden is replaced by Lauren Oakley following backstage collapse

Hello and welcome to MailOnline’s live coverage of the Strictly Come Dancing live show on Icons week.

Ten celebrities will take to the ballroom tonight all hoping to avoid the dreaded dance off.

Last week, the undoubted stars of the show were EastEnders’Jamie Borthwick Sarah Hadland who each scored a near faultless 38 points.

While Shayne Ward was saved by the judges as Dr Purnam Krishnan was sent packing when they faced off on Sunday.

So who will become the ‘legend’ of Icons Week and who will go home?

Stick with us to find out as we guide you through tonight’s show and join in by posting your thoughts in our comments section.

Week 7 of Strictly Come Dancing is officially here – sit back, relax and watch with us as we welcome the first couple – Pete Wicks and Jowita- onto the dancefloor!

The pair will be performing a salsa to Another One Bites the Dust by Queen.

We’re just minutes away from Week 7’s live show kicking off on BBC One.

Our reporter Olivia Christie will guide you through the performances as the 10 remaining celebrities take to the dance floor.

Let us know your reaction to tonight’s show by joining in the conversation in our comments section.

Tonight’s show is officially the mid-way milestone of the contest – the seventh live show out of 13.

The celebrities will no doubt be gearing up for the annual trip Blackpool Tower Ballroom in just a fortnight.

But who will move one step closer? Keep following to find out…

Strictly Come Dancing fans are convinced that another professional dancer will be quitting the show after spotting a major clue.

Carlos Gu, 31, who joined the BBC show in 2022, returned to the dance floor this year for the 2024 series, however, the favourite was not partnered with a celebrity.

Now, according to The Sun, viewers believe the choreographer is likely to leave at the end of the series – with some saying he seems ‘p****d off’ at the fact he was left without a partner.

Amy Dowden has been forced to pull out of Strictly this week after she was rushed to hospital on Saturday.

Lauren Oakley has since stepped in as JB Gill‘s temporary partner while she recovers.

JB and Lauren will be dancing Couple’s Choice routine to Bruno Mars for the first ever Icons Week.

Madonna once said the ‘world refuses to celebrate women past the age of 45’ and has called out ageism in the industry countless times.

Now Sarah Hadland has channelled her inner Material Girl as she says she refuses to become ‘invisible at 50’ and has ‘no time’ for ageism.

The actress will dance the Cha Cha to Madonna’s Like a Prayer for Strictly Come Dancing’s Icons Week on Saturday.

Speaking ahead of the show, Sarah said: ‘A lot of women do feel invisible in their 50s.

‘I think it’s slightly changing, it is improving.

‘If there’s one thing I’d like to do, it is to make people realise that age doesn’t mean anything.

According to the one bookmaker, Actor Shayne Ward is the favourite to be eliminated this week.

However, Sam Quek, Wynne Evans and JLS star JB Gill have all also been identified as at risk.

According to gambling company Ladbroke, Shayne has odds of 6/4, Wynne has odds of 7/2, Sam Quek comes in at 4/1 and JB Gill has odds of 5/1.

Spokesperson Alex Apati told the Mirror today: ‘Shayne Ward leads the way in the elimination betting after a shaky couple of performances, but four names are in huge danger of a shock exit this weekend, with Wynne, Sam and JB also being at risk.’

Can’t wait for tonight’s action?

Here’s a preview of the Icons-themed songs and dances:

• JB Gill and Lauren Oakley — Couples Choice to Bruno Mars Medley
• Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe — Waltz to I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston
• Sam Quek and Nikita Kuzmin — American Smooth to Love Story (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift
• Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola — Cha Cha to Like A Prayer by Madonna
• Tasha Ghouri and Aljaž Škorjanec — Couple’s Choice to What About Us by P!nk
• Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell — Tango to Rock and Roll All Nite by KISS
• Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas — Samba to Faith by George Michael
• Pete Wicks and Jowita Pryzstal — Salsa to Another One Bites The Dust by Queen
• Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu — Quickstep to Help! By The Beatles
• Wynne Evans and Katya Jones — Rumba to This Is My Life by Shirley Bassey

– not necessarily in order of performance

Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has issued a special message to dance partner JB Gill as he prepared to dance without her on Saturday night.

The Welsh dancer, 34, was forced to pull out of this weekend’s show after collapsing  backstage last week, with fellow professional Lauren Oakley being drafted in as her replacement.

And hours before JLS singer JB, 37, and choreographer Lauren, 33, took to the dancefloor, Amy – who is understood to be in remission after battling breast cancer and has Crohn’s disease – wrote a heartfelt message of support for the pair on social media.

Heading into Halloween week, let’s take a look at which celebrities impressed judges Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, Shirley Ballas and Anton Du Beke.

And who will be looking to surge up the leaderboard to avoid slipping into the bottom two.

• Jamie and Michelle – 38
• Sarah and Vito – 38
• Tasha and Aljaz – 37
• Montell and Johannes – 35
• JB and Amy – 32
• Pete and Jowita – 31
• Shayne and Nancy – 31
• Wynne and Katya – 31
• Sam and Nikita – 31
• Chris and Dianne – 26
• Punam and Gorka – 26