Giovanni Pernice begins rehearsals for new project hours after being axed from Strictly Come Dancing
Giovanni has kicked off his tour rehearsals
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Giovanni Pernice seems to be in high spirits after the news of his Strictly Come Dancing axing came on Monday morning as his Together tour with co-star Anton Du Beke kicked off its rehearsals.
Pernice has been at the centre of controversy and a legal battle against Amanda Abbington after she claimed to have suffered PTSD from their training sessions, which soon led to five more former partners coming forward with allegations.
The Italian dancer stood firm and refuted all allegations made against him and enlisted the help of London legal firm Schillings to fight his corner and clear his name.
Strictly Come Dancing announced which judges and professionals would be returning to the ballroom this year, with Pernice being left off of the 2024 roster, with the broadcaster yet to release an official statement on his departure.
It seems that the Latin and Ballroom champion isn't letting the axing affect him thought as the tech rehearsals for his Together Tour with Du Beke kicked off today.
The StrictlyTheatreCo Instagram account reposted on their story today an image of the poster for the tour and a caption which read: "Tech starts today for this one."
Giovanni and Anton are about to kick off their Together tour
Du Beke also recently showed his support by liking a post from the tour's official Instagram account, which featured a snap of the duo in high spirits, captioned: "6 more days until Opening! ! ! The countdown begins! ! ! TOGETHER TOUR 2024."
Pernice has dedicated a successful eight years on the show, with fans noticing that his name was absent from the line-up for Strictly Come Dancing's next series.
His previous year came with a lot of drama, which he recently addressed for the first time on the Mirror's Invite Only podcast and said of his high standards: "I am a perfectionist, 100 per cent, but it comes from a perspective of caring.
"I think all of the professional dancers are in the same place. In every single part of the world, if you're a professional dancer on one of these shows, you have to get these people looking the best they can on Saturday night.
Anton and Giovanni kicked off their tech rehearsals for tour
"And if we have good scores at the end, I do look back and say, 'I've done a great job'. But we all care about our partners and we want that for them every single week to look great on a Saturday.
"There's no specific way that you are, or have to be with your celebrity. You make the most of their strengths so the only thing that's constant is the fact that you have to do a show on Saturday night."
One star who will be returning to the dance floor after a year absent is Amy Dowden, who recently overcame her battle with breast cancer.
Revealing the good news on her Instagram, she told fans of herself and the show: "I'm so happy and grateful to be back on @bbcstrictly.
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"MY HEART IS SO HAPPY. The best team on and off the dance floor. I can’t wait to be back doing what I love most in the world, dancing!
"Feel blessed and more excited than EVER. Bring it on! Thank you @bbcstrictly for your support always. Eeeeeekkk #amysback #strictlycomedancing #letsdothis #excited #cantwait #myheartissohappy."
Also returning is Dianne Buswell, Nadiya Bychkova, Graziano Di Prima, Karen Hauer, Katya Jones, Neil Jones, Nikita Kuzmin, Gorka Marquez, Luba Mushtuk, Jowita Przystal, Johannes Radebe, Kai Widdrington, Nancy Xu, Carlos Gu, Lauren Oakley, Michelle Tsiakkas and Vito Coppola.