Ugo Monye to miss Strictly Come Dancing episode amid back problem

Ugo Monye has announced he will not be able to compete on Strictly Come Dancing this week because of back problems.

The former rugby player had been due to take to the dancefloor with partner Oti Mabuse, but will be absent from the show for a week.

The news comes just a day after comedian Robert Webb and partner Dianne Buswell withdrew from the show over the TV star’s ill health.

Monye wrote on Twitter: “Unfortunately I’m not going to be able to dance this weekend on the show.

“I have a history of back problems which has always been managed under the guidance of medical professionals.

“Unfortunately this has been causing me some unwanted problems this week!

“I have been advised by medical professionals and with huge support from Strictly to get some treatment & rest to ensure that I can get myself back to full capacity & fighting fit for next week.

“Gutted Oti & I won’t be dancing this weekend but wishing all the other contestants the best of luck & will be cheering them on from home!”

Mabuse said on Instagram the Strictly producers “have been so supportive in helping him get better”.

She added that “we are doing all we can to get Ugo back on his fast feet and dancing again”.

Peep Show star Webb, who had open heart surgery two years ago, announced he was pulling out of the programme on Wednesday evening, saying he was advised by a doctor to quit after he had “begun to feel symptoms” while training.

He said in a statement: “I’m extremely sorry to have to announce that I’m withdrawing from Strictly Come Dancing due to ill health.

“Two years ago I had open heart surgery and although I believed I was fit enough to take on Strictly and its demanding schedule, it became clear that I had bitten off way more than I could chew for this stage in my recovery.

“I had begun to feel symptoms that led me to seek an urgent consultation with my heart specialist, and it was her view that it would be better for the sake of my health to step back from the show.

“I’m proud of the three dances that Dianne Buswell and I managed to perform and deeply regret having to let her down like this.

“I couldn’t have wished for a more talented partner or more patient teacher, and it’s a measure of Dianne’s professionalism and kindness that I was able to get as far as I did.”

He thanked viewers for voting for him and Buswell, adding he was “especially touched by the support from fellow heart patients”.

“I think perhaps I was too eager to impress them. They will know that recovery doesn’t always go in a straight line, and I hope they’re not too disappointed that I ran into the limits of my resilience much sooner than I’d hoped,” he said.

“I leave knowing that Strictly viewers are in very safe hands and I’ll be cheering for my brother and sister contestants all the way to Christmas.

“Despite this sad ending, it has been a genuine honour to be part of this huge, joyful and barking mad TV show. Long may it continue.”

Last weekend McFly star Tom Fletcher and partner Amy Dowden returned to the dancefloor after testing positive for coronavirus.

The duo missed a week of shows while they were self-isolating.