FORMER Strictly pro Giovanni Pernice tried to ring actress Amanda Abbington during the BBC’s probe into his alleged bullying of her.

The dancer’s mobile call came just weeks ago after it emerged the investigation team were attempting to find missing footage of the pair’s rehearsals.

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Ex-Strictly pro Giovanni Pernice tried to ring actress Amanda Abbington during the BBC’s bullying probeCredit: PA

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Actress Amanda claims Giovanni was ‘abusive, cruel and mean’ during their practice sessionsCredit: Rex
Amanda, 50, who claims Giovanni was “abusive, cruel and mean” during their practice sessions, was “shocked” to see the 33-year-old Italian’s name flash up on screen, it is claimed.

The matter — around the time pro Graziano Di Prima was sacked — was reported to investigators.

They are said to be close to revealing their ­findings, but were delayed by new evidence.

An insider said: “Giovanni tried to call Amanda a few weeks ago. Nobody knows why. They’ve not spoken since she quit the show, so for him to call out of the blue, especially with an inquiry taking place, is very odd.

“Amanda didn’t want to speak to him and blocked his number. She wants nothing to do with Giovanni.

“She told her team of the incident and they passed on the information to the BBC executives heading up the inquiry. Giovanni hasn’t been in touch since.”

Another source close to the BBC said: “Strictly producers want to try to move on from this. The longer all this drags out, the worse the impact will be on this year’s 20th anniversary series. The Gio inquiry is a black cloud hanging over it.”

Sherlock star Amanda told us in July that she was not willing to keep the alleged bullying under wraps.

She said: “I couldn’t sit back and let him do that to other people.”

The BBC yesterday said: “We will not be commenting on individuals or engaging in speculation.”

A source close to Giovanni said it was a misdial he reported to the BBC at the time.

The new series starts on September 14.

Amanda was ‘shocked’ to see Gio’s name flash up on screen, it is claimedCredit: Pixel8000

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A source close to Giovanni said the call to Amanda was the result of a misdialCredit: Getty