Giovanni Pernice, the Strictly Come Dancing sensation who faced a BBC investigation over bullying claims, is reportedly making a telly comeback.
The dancer, who’s been strutting his stuff on Italy’s version of the dance show, is tipped to feature in Channel 4’s Celebrity Hunted. This comes after the BBC cleared him of most allegations following accusations from actress Amanda Abbington.
The Sicilian dancer, aged 34, had already recorded his stint for the celeb challenge series back in 2022, but it got put on ice when Abbington lobbed the bullying bombshell, triggering the BBC to dig deep into the matter. Although Giovanni was given the all-clear on 10 out of the 16 complaints, six stuck.
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Abbington, known for her role in Sherlock, had been twirling around with Giovanni on the dance floor. According to The Sun, Channel 4 bosses mulled over cutting Giovanni’s footage but have now decided to let the show hit screens this coming January.
(Image: PA)
An insider spilled the beans to the tabloid: “It was absolutely right to shelve Hunted while the BBC took the time to unravel the claims against Giovanni. It was filmed in 2022 and due to screen last year, but will now air in early 2025.”
In other news, Gio has teamed up with his mate, Strictly judge and dance legend Anton Du Beke, to announce a theatre tour dubbed The Last Dance, set to sashay from January through May.
Taking to social media, Gio couldn’t contain his excitement, declaring: “I’m back baby! ” Over in Italy, he’s been wowing audiences and judges alike, bagging five perfect 10s with his dance partner and setting records, reports the Mirror.
(Image: Instagram)
The BBC’s probe gave Giovanni a clean bill, finding no evidence of violence or physical abuse. The report did, however, highlight some questionable moments of “inappropriate behaviour of sexual banter in the workplace” and instances where Gio was less than charming, using “belittling, dismissive and insulting” language peppered with expletives.
In a twist, one of Gio’s ex-Strictly partners is set to join him on Celebrity Hunted. Radio 2’s Richie Anderson, who twirled with Giovanni in 2022, kept schtum during the investigation.
Gossip mills went into overdrive when Richie hit the unfollow button on Gio’s socials, fuelling rumours of a backstage bust-up.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
