How the saga unfolded on the BBC’s hit show

[Pelican Press 0]

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

How the saga unfolded on the BBC’****** show

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==BBC

Amanda Abbington, pictured with partner Giovanni Pernice, withdrew from Strictly last October

Strictly Come Dancing has been one of the BBC’s most iconic and beloved shows for the past 20 years.

But recently, it has been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons, amid allegations concerning two of its professional dancers.

Both men – Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima – have now left the show. Both have denied any suggestions of abusive or threatening behaviour during rehearsals.

The BBC, for its part, has insisted it has robust duty of care procedures, which it has bolstered with a series of new measures

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

But the saga has raised question marks over what’s really happening behind the scenes.

Here’s how events have unfolded over the past year.

23 October 2023 – Amanda Abbington withdraws from Strictly

The Sherlock actress

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

in week six, having missed the previous weekend’s show for medical reasons.

Abbington was paired with Italian professional dancer Giovanni Pernice.

24 October 2023 – Abbington expresses ‘regret’ over exit

A day after the BBC announced that Abbington had withdrawn, the star took to

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

to express her “deepest regret” at having to leave.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

for being “unable to continue”.

She added that she “did not come to this decision easily or lightly… I’m so sad I am unable to go any further”.

Pernice also commented on

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, writing: “I am so sad we can’t continue but I am proud of what we achieved and I am sending you so much love.”

19 May 2024 – Giovanni rejects claims over teaching methods

Pernice says he is “surprised” by media reports about his teaching methods and rejects “any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour”.

The dancer added that

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

Legal firm Carter Ruck said it had contacted the BBC regarding “numerous serious complaints” about his alleged behaviour while filming Strictly.

It has been widely reported Abbington had experienced difficulties with Pernice.

29 May 2024 – BBC promises fairness

The BBC promises to handle any complaints with “care, fairness and sensitivity” to all sides, following reports about Pernice’s teaching methods.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

addressing “media reports about a high profile show”, which was believed to concern Strictly.

10 June 2024 – Giovanni out of 2024 line-up

It is confirmed that Pernice will not return to Strictly Come Dancing for the next series.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

as part of its line-up of professional dancers for 2024, following reports that he would not compete.

13 July 2024 – Graziano out of line-up

Di Prima confirms that

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

In a statement on

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, he said he “deeply regrets” the events leading up to his departure and acknowledged that his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected my training regime”.

A BBC spokesperson confirmed that Di Prima was “no longer a part of the line-up of professional dancers for the upcoming series”.

Last year, Di Prima danced with TV presenter Zara McDermott.

16 July 2024 – McDermott speaks up

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

in incidents in the Strictly training room that she now finds “incredibly distressing” to watch back.

The former Love Island star and documentary maker also said she had “wrestled with the ***** of opening up” about her experiences because “I was scared about public backlash, I was scared about my future, I was scared of victim shaming”.

The BBC subsequently announced it would put a member of production staff in all future rehearsals.

There will also be two new dedicated ******** producers, as part of a string of extra measures.

More on Strictly Come Dancing:

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

#saga #unfolded #BBCs #hit #show

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up