Strictly Come Dancing star Lauren Oakley has shared the sad news that her grandmother Jean has passed away.
On Instagram, Lauren shared a carousel post featuring her and her grandmother and wrote: "In my heart forever and always.
"When I dance, you’ll be there. My biggest fan. I’ll miss you every day."
Related: Strictly Come Dancing pro breaks Guinness World Record in show challenge
Lauren was supported by a number of Strictly pros and celebrities in the comments, with Zara McDermott writing: "I’m so sorry Lauren."
Gorka Márquez commented: "Sending you lots of love," while Jowita Przystał added: "Sending you lots of love."
What to Read Next
Dianne Buswell and Nancy Xu both sent Lauren their love with a series of heart emojis.
Lauren was partnered with Channel 4 news anchor Krishnan Guru-Murthy during the 2023 series of Strictly, with the pair becoming the seventh couple to be eliminated.
Related: Strictly pro Lauren Oakley shuts down trolls over "long hair" comments
Following their elimination, Krishnan praised the "incredibly talented" Lauren on social media, sharing: "She taught me with patience and trust, boosted me when I doubted, picked me up when I crumbled.
"If you want to understand the kind of person she is: when dance performance shut down during the pandemic Lauren worked in a care home, she dreams of running an animal sanctuary and she's so fun she really ought to be presenting children's (and family) television."
Strictly Come Dancing will return later this year on BBC One, while spin-off Strictly: It Takes Two airs on weeknights on BBC Two. Both shows are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Tickets for Strictly's 2024 live arena tour are available now.
Interested in talking about Strictly Come Dancing? Visit our dedicated sub-forum
You Might Like...
Reporter, Digital Spy
Stephanie is a freelance news writer, who previously covered WWE and AEW for Digital Spy.
After graduating with a degree in history from Queen Mary University, London, she studied journalism at Birkbeck University.
Outside of her work at Digital Spy, she writes about pop culture, with a special focus towards Irish media and how it intersects with politics.
You can read more of her work on her Substack page.
