Kym Marsh has admitted she was surprised to hear the allegations about her Strictly dance partner Graziano Di Prima.
The pro dancer has exited the BBC ballroom show after he admitted that he had kicked his 2023 celeb partner Zara McDermott during training. He has since told the Daily Mail that “vile, false allegations” about him have “ruined” his life, saying: “I’m not an abusive man.”
Kym – who danced with Graziano on the programme in 2022 – has now weighed in amid the show’s crisis, which has also seen pro Giovanni Pernice depart amid allegations about his teaching methods, which he denies. She told The Sun she would “always have tremendously fond memories” of her time on Strictly.
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“I’m reluctant to talk too much about someone else’s experience,” said the Corrie actress. “I had one of the best times of my life doing that show and it was amazing.
(Image: Dave J. Hogan/Getty Images)
“I didn’t have any experiences like we’ve heard. It definitely, definitely did not represent what I had experienced, no.” Asked whether she was surprised about allegations regarding Graziano, she replied: “Yeah.”
Strictly has faced a flurry of bad press since Amanda Abbington pulled out of the 2023 series early. The Sherlock actress has alleged that her pro partner Giovanni’s behaviour was “unnecessary, abusive, cruel and mean”, but he has previously denied the allegations against him and has made it clear that he looks forward to clearing his name.
(Image: Getty Images)
Then in July it emerged that last year Graziano kicked Zara once during rehearsals, and his spokesman told the BBC: “There is never a time when kicking, or any sense of that is right. And he knows that. He knows he’s made a mistake. He apologised at the time.”
Graziano has now spoken out about the allegations, telling the Mail: “I’m not a monster. I’m not an abusive man. I will not let these lies define me. They are not who I am. These vile, false allegations ruined my life in a matter of minutes – professionally, financially, psychologically and reputationally.”
(Image: BBC/Guy Levy)
The dancer said his mind had been going back and forward “trying to think of something that happened all those months ago that I can’t figure out”.
He said: “The only thing I can think of is the time I kicked the floor in frustration… I wasn’t meaning to kick her. I’d never, never do that. My foot brushed her after I kicked the floor. Afterwards I hugged her and said I was sorry. There was no problem. We carried on.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
