Webb leaves Strictly on doctors’ orders due to concern about heart health
Comedian Robert Webb has withdrawn from strictly come Dancing due to ill health, the BBC said.
The Peep Show star, who had open heart surgery two years ago, said he was advised by a doctor to quit the show after he had "begun to feel symptoms” while training for the BBC One celebrity dancing competition.
Webb, 49, was partnered with Dianne Buswell in the show. 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,” he added. “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 had hoped.”
During his time on the show Webb completed a tango, a cha cha and a quickstep. Buswell said: “We made a great team, worked hard and had a good laugh along the way. I am so proud of the three amazing dances we produced.
"I know Robert had a lot more to give to the competition but his health of course comes first and I wish him a speedy recovery.”