There was great excitement when it was announced that Sherlock star Amanda Abbington would be appearing on Strictly.
The 51-year-old mother of two teenagers embodied the essence of the show, a middle-aged celebrity who had no dance experience with bar ballet lessons as a child.
Under the guidance of Strictly's star professional dancer Giovanni Pernice, she transformed from an ugly duckling into a swan and hugged her partner as the judges awarded her high scores.
Then rumors surfaced that Amanda and Gio had a fight. She dismissed them as complete “nonsense” regarding X.
But five weeks later she gave up, saying she was suffering from an unspecified illness. She then demanded recordings of her and Gio's daily training sessions in order to take legal action.
There was great excitement when it was announced that Sherlock star Amanda Abbington (right) would be appearing on Strictly
Who knows what lies behind Amanda's grief? Perhaps her breakup with her partner of 16 years, Martin Freeman, contributed to this. He is now dating Rachel Mariam, 29, (pictured together), two decades her junior
She said she wanted proof that his harsh training had left her so traumatized that she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Of course I understand that – she is visibly upset. But what did she expect when she signed up to Strictly?
Many celebrities would kill for this opportunity. Recently widowed former tennis star Annabel Croft thrived on the show, winning admiration and high dancing scores for her long-lost husband.
Under the guidance of Strictly's professional star dancer Giovanni Pernice (pictured), she transformed from an ugly duckling into a swan
Who knows what lies behind Amanda's grief? Perhaps her breakup with her partner of 16 years, Martin Freeman, contributed to this. He is now dating Rachel Mariam, 29, two decades her junior. The difficulties of raising two teenage children alone?
Whatever the reason, after their wonderful first performances together, it was sad to hear Amanda claim that the relationship was strained and that she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
We first learned about the term when soldiers returned from war, completely devastated by what they had been through.
Now it is made available to anyone going through a difficult experience. And I have to say that in my opinion dancing with Giovanni does not meet this condition.
Still, I feel sorry for Amanda, a great actress and talented beginner dancer.
The BBC has promised to stand by Giovanni as it should. He never complained or told his side of the story. His career could have been over because of Amanda's breakdown.
Maybe the lesson is that instead of blaming others for our mental health, we should take care of ourselves.
I give zero points for this appearance on Strictly, Amanda.