Arlene Phillips has begun her own investigation into the circumstances surrounding her departure from Strictly Come Dancing, 12 years after she last appeared on the show.

The choreographer, now 76, was a judge on the first six series of the ballroom contest between 2004 and 2008, but in 2009 was replaced by former contestant Alesha Dixon.

At the time the BBC was accused of ageism for its decision to remove Phillips - allegations it strenuously denied - and now she is using the Freedom of Information Act to get to the bottom of what happened.

"I've got the Freedom of Information and looking at the chaotic way that led up to it was shocking. Most is redacted," Phillips told an episode of Sod's Law Podcast.

"There's some information there and even that's chaotic, let alone what was redacted from the report.

"Nowadays, they could have given me the chance to resign or build a story around it. I didn't have a contract that automatically rolled on to the next year, but I think it was handled so poorly. You then never forget those moments of turmoil."

After leaving Strictly, Phillips went on to become a judge on the UK version of So You Think You Can Dance? and has also embarked upon a spoken word tour.