GIO’S RETURN 

Strictly’s Giovanni Pernice to make tv comeback on Lorraine TOMORROW after quitting show amid bullying probe

Gio was accused of making another slur in a further BBC complaint

GIOVANNI Pernice will break his silence on the Strictly probe in his first interview since the scandal.

The BBC cleared Giovanni, 34, of ten of the 16 allegations made against him by partner Amanda Abbington when the £250k investigation wrapped last month.

Giovanni Pernice is set to speak out on the Strictly Come Dancing probe on Lorraine on Tuesday
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Giovanni Pernice is set to speak out on the Strictly Come Dancing probe on Lorraine on TuesdayCredit: Getty

Amanda spoke out on Newsnight following the BBC's report
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Amanda spoke out on Newsnight following the BBC’s report

The pair danced together last year but Amanda quit the series
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The pair danced together last year but Amanda quit the seriesCredit: PA
The Sicilian will join Lorraine Kelly on her daytime chat show this morning.

A TV source said: “Amanda has conducted a number of interviews throughout the investigation on high-profile platforms like Channel 4 News but Giovanni was not able to do so as a BBC employee.

“Now it is complete, Giovanni is able to discuss certain things but most importantly, move forward with his career.

“He will chat to Lorraine about his upcoming solo tour The Last Dance and run of new dates for his gigs with Anton Du Beke.”

She revealed her nightmare rehearsals with Gio got so bad she was actually relieved when a cancer scare meant she could quit the show.

The BBC apologised to the actress as she revealed her experience with him was “morbid and toxic”.

Amanda Abbington reveals she held tearful secret meeting with Giovanni Pernice’s former partners at her home and ‘they all said the same thing’
Amanda alleged Giovanni called her a “vegetable” — days after meeting her wheelchair-user fiancé.

After a backlash from Amanda and other former dance partners, Giovanni was at the centre of an escalating crisis.

During the investigation, he was further accused of using a shocking slur on an epileptic man in another BBC complaint.

He was accused of calling a dance show colleague a “s*****c” because of his epilepsy, BBC investigators were told.

The former Strictly pro was alleged to have made the remark when the pair were working on his Made In Italy tour last year.

But the Beeb dismissed it, telling the complainant: “The concerns you raise appear to relate to Mr Pernice’s conduct outside of his engagement with the BBC. This is therefore not a matter we would be able to look into.”

A spokeswoman for Giovanni said: “The allegation is upsetting as they had such a positive friendship on the tour.

“Even more alarming is the timing. We regard this conduct as a smear campaign.”

 

It comes as Giovanni is due to make a brief return to Strictly in a one off special celebriting the show’s 20 years on screen.

He’ll appear in footage from 2021 dancing with EastEnders star Rose Ayling-Ellis, who was the first deaf contestant to lift the Glitterball Trophy.