He had hoped to light up the Strictly ballroom in Italy after quitting the BBC dance show amid complaints from his partner Amanda Abbington.
But The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Giovanni Pernice has been told by the Italian show’s bosses they can’t sign him up for this year’s series because he has yet to be exonerated by investigators four months after they launched their inquiry.
Mr Pernice, 33, had been in talks with chiefs of Ballando con le Stelle for several months and they were thrilled at the prospect of him joining as one of their professional dancers.
But they are devastated at having to pull the offer – worth around £100,000 to the Italian dancer – because the BBC are yet to clear him after the internal inquiry into Ms Abbington’s claims he bullied her during rehearsals.
It can be revealed Mr Pernice is also now unlikely to appear on ITV’s reality show I’m A Celebrity in a deal which could have earned him around £250,000.
+4
View gallery
Giovanni Pernice had hoped to light up the Strictly ballroom in Italy after quitting the BBC dance show amid complaints from his partner Amanda Abbington (pictured in March)
+4
View gallery
The Mail on Sunday can reveal that the dancer has been told by the Italian show’s bosses they can’t sign him up for this year’s series because he has yet to be exonerated by investigators
The channel had hoped to make the most of his popularity with BBC viewers.
It is likely Mr Pernice will launch legal action against the Corporation, where he could cite a failure in their duty of care because they carry out no psychological tests on contestants. He is ‘absolutely furious’ the BBC have made him wait so long.
A source told The Mail on Sunday: ‘Gio was so excited that he was going to keep on dancing and what made it so much more lovely is that it would have been in his home country.
‘But the deadline was looming and the Ballando bosses just couldn’t wait any longer for the BBC to announce their verdict. They are as gutted as Gio is.
‘It is absolutely horrendous for Gio. He has been stuck in limbo and has been unable to move on with his life.
‘He has so many offers on the table but without the BBC clearing his name he can’t move forward. Nobody can understand why this is taking so long.
‘He is losing money hand over fist. He was presented with Amanda’s claims weeks and weeks ago, there was nothing there that proved he was a bully, as he has been insisting all along.
‘He has a clear case against the BBC here. They put him in a room with a woman without doing the most basic of checks which ultimately put him in a position where his career is potentially ruined and his income stream is cut off’.
+4
View gallery
But they are devastated at having to pull the offer because the BBC are yet to clear him after the internal inquiry into Ms Abbington’s claims he bullied her during rehearsals (Giovanni and Amanda Abington pictured in October 2023)
They added: ‘Gio had to leave Strictly because of Amanda’s claims and now it has ruined his chance to move on.’
Ballando con le Stelle launched in 2005 – a year after Strictly began in the UK – and is filmed in a magnificent 19th century theatre at the RAI Auditorium at the Foro Italico in Rome.
Mr Pernice hired legal firm Schillings in April after Ms Abbington made a formal complaint to the BBC.
One source said: ‘He certainly has the infrastructure in place to sue should he decide to take that route, which right now is a huge possibility.’
News
Cat Deeley GRIMACES as she’s KNOCKED out by This Morning’s blind guest – as Ben Shephard COMPLETELY lost it in the show
A hilarious resurfaced clip of Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard in a cooking segment on This Morning is doing the rounds again on social media – leading viewers to gush that ‘British daytime TV is the best’. In the clip, which was originally aired…
Lord Sugar’s reaction CRITICISED in NTA speech after Kate Garraway’s BEST documentary win as Apprentice stars brand awards to ITV stars
Lord Sugar has let loose with an explosive rant following Kate Garraway’s best authored documentary win at the NTA’s, suggesting there is a bias towards ITV stars. The Apprentice star, 77, took to social media to pen a series of angry tweets about the National…
Good Morning Britain host Susanna Reid was left fighting TEARS instalment of the ITV show when a devastated mother shared her story of her daughter’s traumatic D3ATH
Good Morning Britain host Susanna Reid was left fighting tears on Thursday’s instalment of the ITV show when a devastated mother shared her story of her daughter’s traumatic death. Abimbola Duyile, who is a mum-of-two, was left devastated when her 13-year-old daughter Hannah died after…
EXCLUSIVEStrictly dancers are living in FEAR over who will get the boot NEXT and have been left ‘ENTIRELY IN THE DARK’ over ongoing misconduct probe
They’ve watched two of their colleagues leave Strictly over abuse and bullying allegations. And now the show’s remaining professional dancers have revealed that they have been ‘entirely kept in the dark’ by bosses and told how they have been left…
Kate Garraway’s daughter Darcey’s HEARTBREAKING gesture spotted by fans as mum WINS NTA
Kate Garraway ‘s broke down in tears at the National Television Awards on Wednesday night as she collected an award for her documentary on late husband Derek Draper with her two children by her side. During the heartwarming family moment, Kate’s teenage daughter…
Debbie McGee has given EVIDENCE at the BBC Strictly misconduct inquiry after she PARTNERED with Giovanni Pernice on the show
Debbie McGee has revealed she has been asked to give evidence in a BBC investigation into Strictly Come Dancing. Dancer Giovanni Pernice was suspended while a probe is conducted over claims of off-camera misconduct made by his partner Amanda Abbington and two other former celebrity dance partners. Giovanni has…
End of content
No more pages to load