Friends of Arlene Phillips have revealed that she is devastated about being sacked from Strictly Come Dancing.

A few weeks ago the BBC announced that Arlene was being replaced by previous winner Alesha Dixon and pro-dancer Darcey Russell.

According to The Mirror, Phillips has emailed a friend to reveal: “I’m really sad.”

Ex-dancer Debbie Moore, who has been friends with the star for 30 years, told the newspaper: “She’s devastated. I sent an email asking how she was and got a one-line reply saying how sad she was.

“I’m really angry she’s being treated like this. She loved the show and said it was the best thing she’s ever done. Replacing her with Alesha Dixon doesn’t make sense. Arlene is a world-class choreographer. If they wanted Alesha, they should have got rid of one of the men. The BBC are going to alienate the existing viewers.”