Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Strictly’s Nicola Adams says she doesn’t know why same-sex pairing became such a ‘big deal’

Olympic boxer is rumoured to be dancing with Katya Jones on show

Ellie Harrison
Saturday 10 October 2020 13:18 EDT
Comments
Nicola Adams celebrates gold

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Nicola Adams has commented on being part of the first ever Strictly Come Dancing same-sex couple.

The Olympic boxer, who has been praised as an LGBT+ role model, told the Daily Star she asked BBC bosses to be partnered with a female professional dancer when she signed up to take part in the show earlier this year.

“It was important to me because of diversity,” she said. “I just wanted to do something different and I didn’t get the big deal being paired with another female.

“We go to nightclubs and girls dance with girls all the time and professional female dancers dance with girls all the time, so I don’t think it’s a big deal.”

She added: “I think it’s really good to be able to show diversity for the younger generation.

“It’s nice for members of the LGBT community to be able to think to themselves, ‘That could be me one day dancing on Strictly.’”

Adams was recently spotted leaving rehearsals with professional dancer Katya Jones, causing speculation that the two are in a pair.

Her fellow contestant Bill Bailey recently admitted he does not know what he is in for on the show, just weeks before it begins.

Bailey told Good Morning Britain: “I don’t really know much about what's going on. We haven’t really started properly at all. At this stage, I’m a little bit in the dark about it.”

He added: “Obviously I’ve seen the show. As far as the training and who I’m going to be dancing with... I’m still in the dark.”

Strictly is reportedly set to premiere on 24 October and run until 19 December, meaning the series will be just nine weeks long, compared to the usual 12 weeks.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in