Getty "Dancing With the Stars" pros Emma Slater and Sasha Farber were heartbroken after the death of Len Goodman.
“Dancing With the Stars” pros Emma Slater and Sasha Farber were heartbroken after the death of Len Goodman.
Goodman was best known in the U.S. for judging “DWTS” from 2005 to 2022, but he was renowned in England as a judge on the hit BBC reality competition “Strictly Come Dancing.”
Goodman died on April 23 in a hospice in Kent, England after battling bone cancer, the New York Times reported. He was 78.
Slater — who filed for divorce from Farber in February 2023, per E! Online — took to Instagram to share her grief.
“I’m sitting here in my thoughts a little bit because um and it’s all just coming out. It feels like the end of an era,” Slater, 34, said via Instagram Stories on April 24. “I’m so sad about Len Goodman.”
“I wasn’t gonna come on here because I really don’t have anything to say other than my love and my thoughts are with your family, Len, and thank you so much for everything you did for us, for everything you did for the dance world, for the moments that we had together,” she continued. “I’ll be very grateful forever and I’ll always cherish them.”
Before Slater ended the video, she said: “Thank you so much and we’re gonna miss you.”
The dancer posted a lengthy message to her Instagram account, where she said she was in shock over Goodman’s death.
“I just can’t believe it,” she wrote. “You are the father of ballroom without doubt, and you kept us all in line. But it’s the personality for me that shone the most, you always had it.”
“I first met you 21 years ago and you judged me at competitions in the UK when I was a kid,” she continued. “My parents would take me to all the competitions that you judged at because you always marked me well!!”
Farber and Slater have been married since 2018, according to E! Online. The divorce is amicable, the outlet said.
Farber Will ‘Always Remember’ Goodman
Farber, 38, also posted a message about Goodman after his death was announced.
Goodman Retired From ‘DWTS’ Last Year
Goodman’s unexpected death was confirmed on April 24 to the BBC by his agent, Jackie Gill.
“It is with great sadness to announce that Len Goodman has passed away peacefully, aged 78,” Gill said. “A much loved husband, father and grandfather who will be sorely missed by family, friends and all who knew him.”
Goodman retired from “DWTS” after season 31 finished airing in November 2022.
“Doing a live show you have to be at the top of your game and quick to react. And as one gets older, then things start to get more challenging,” Goodman told People in November 2022. “I haven’t fallen asleep or started dribbling yet on the show, so I thought it’s best to go before I start to do so!”
“I will miss the California sunshine, working with my fellow judges and the camaraderie with everyone on the show,” he added to People. “I’ll miss seeing the celebrities developing into dancers and I will miss being part of one of the most successful shows on TV.”