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Strictly Come Dancing bosses have drawn up contingency plans if Nick Knowles is forced to withdraw from this weekend’s show.
Producers are desperate not to lose their most-profile star from the 20th anniversary series.
They have made plans to give the 62-year-old a ‘free pass’ to week three while he recovers, instead of forcing him to withdraw from the competition completely.
A source said: ‘They are all anxiously waiting to get the all clear from the medical team about Nick being able to compete this weekend, but are determined not to lose him from the show.
Strictly Come Dancing bosses have drawn up contingency plans if Nick Knowles is forced to withdraw from this weekend’s show
Producers are desperate not to lose their most-profile star from the 20th anniversary series
‘He is such a popular figure with viewers, and if he needs time to recover he will get a free pass to return the following week, all being well.’
‘If that bothers other contestants, then so be it. The bosses want him back.’
Yesterday, Knowles was under the medical supervision of doctors and physiotherapists in a desperate bid to stay in the contest.
He will return to Strictly rehearsals on Wednesday, where doctors will make a final decision on whether he is able to continue.
This weekend, the first celebrity contestant will be voted off the dance show.
After visiting Harley Street for an emergency MRI scan on Monday, Knowles told Strictly spin-off show It Takes Two that he remained ‘really hopeful’ he could continue on the show.
But host Janette Manrara told viewers: ‘At this stage, we don’t know if you’ll be able to dance on Saturday.’
He is due to dance an American Smooth to Blur’s Parklife with his professional partner Luba Mushtuk, providing he gets the all-clear from medics.
After visiting Harley Street for an emergency MRI scan on Monday, Knowles told Strictly spin-off show It Takes Two that he remained ‘really hopeful’ he could continue on the show
He will return to Strictly rehearsals on Wednesday, where doctors will make a final decision on whether he is able to continue
Mushtuk joked that they’ll make Knowles’s sling ‘sparkly’ and said that he ‘still has perfect position on the right arm.’
She said the pair can work on doing ‘perfect footwork’ for the foxtrot element of the dance and will still hopefully do a lift, noting that they could ‘work around’ the injury.
Knowles added: ‘Luckily I’m very big, and Luba is very light, so one-arm lifts.’
A BBC insider said: ‘No firm decision has been made. We are still very much hopeful that Nick will dance this weekend.
‘Between everyone we are managing the injury. Nick very much wants to dance, his health comes first and we all have our fingers crossed.’
Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One on Saturday at 6:15pm.