Strictly Come Dancing has its first ever same-sex dance partnership

Strictly Come Dancing has returned to our screens but this year the ballroom dancing competition is stepping away from the norm as the show debuts its first same-sex partnership. Who put the strict in Strictly Come Dancing anyway? Former boxer Nicola Adams and professional dancer Katya Jones have been impressing the nation each week with knock-out performances.

Despite the sheer level of serotonin I had when I found out that Nicola Adams would be in the Strictly class of 2020, many people criticised her due to her sexuality and her preference to dance with a woman. Former Strictly star, Ann Widdecombe, has been described by the Metro as ''the national sweetheart of bigots'' and I couldn't agree more after she made a homophobic remark, in which she claimed that a same-sex partnership is not what people want to see, especially not families.

It is comforting to see that this is reflected and normalised on mainstream TV

Strict-ly speaking, there are 212,000 same-sex families in the UK (according to the Office for National Statistics in 2019) and countless more families who support LGBTQ+ rights, therefore Nicola Adams and Katya Jones' sublime partnership is in fact what many people have been looking for. For LGBTQ+ awareness, representation is essential and as being in an interracial queer couple myself, it is comforting to see that this is reflected and normalised on mainstream TV. It's an incredibly good sign that the show is building on diversity; last year, professional dancers Johannes Radebe and Giovanni Di Prima performed a short routine together, but now there is representation every week. Hence, Adams is striking an uppercut to Widdecombe's and unfortunately many other homophobic comments simply by being on the show.

Adams is very determined to inspire a new generation of LGBTQ+ dancers

Throwing the homophobia in the trash, many people have praised Nicola Adams for making history not only in the ring but also on the dance floor. The judges themselves have been stunned by the exquisite nature of Adams and Jones' routines so far; Judge Craig Revel Horwood was particularly impressed by the couple's choice dance this week. Horwood said: ''this dance really suits you (Nicola Adams), it's earthy, it's everything you are. I loved the story: the angst, the struggle, the animosity, the celebration, the determination in there.''

That goes without saying that Adams is very determined to inspire a new generation of LGBTQ+ dancers - she really is a force to be reckoned with. Keep dancing and smiling (like Nicola Adams herself); ''I'm a dancer baby'', exclaims Adams grinning from ear to ear.