Giovanni Pernice hit by fourth 'bullying' claim as 'male celebrity complains' amid star battling to clear name
Amanda and Giovanni have been at war since last year
BBC/YOUTUBE/STRICTLY THEATRE CO.
Giovanni Pernice has suffered another major blow as it has been reported that a former male co-star of Pernice's has made a complaint and joined forces with Amanda Abbington and two others.
The former Sherlock star claimed the Strictly Come Dancing professional intentionally stamped on her foot and caused her to have PTSD, leaving her to allegedly suffer from PTSD after their training sessions.
She went on to request all the footage of their time together and enlisted the help of lawyers to help bring a claim against him - leaving two more of his former partners to consider taking action after feeling troubled by his alleged "threatening and abusive behaviour".
Due to Abbington's legal action, the BBC also launched an internal investigation to look into his "abrasive" workplace conduct which reportedly reduced partners to tears and left them "black and blue".
Pernice has refuted all the claims made against him and insisted that he was the one who requested his time with Abbington was recorded after becoming "concerned" for her behaviour just two weeks in.
The latest development in the saga comes as an unnamed male star who worked with the Latin and Ballroom champion during his time on the show is said to have shared his experiences with the same law firm as Abbington.
Abbington left the series during week 5
BBC
A source told The Sun: "After three women came forward, a man has now joined their ranks. He personally reached out to the women at the heart of this unfolding crisis, offering them his support and full backing.
"He has also been in touch with Carter-Ruck and told them what he knows, and shared his experiences. These experiences were, at times, very tricky."
GB News has contacted the BBC and Pernice's representatives for a comment.
Pernice has insisted he will clear his name and hired rival law firm Schillings, with a spokesperson for the firm telling The Sun: "Schillings is engaging with BBC Studios to provide it with Giovanni's evidence to strongly rebut the claims being made about him and confirm Giovanni is fully cooperating.
Pernice has vehemently denied all allegations made against him
ITV
"As with any reality TV show, when decisions are being made for entertainment reasons, the producers have a duty of care to all participants."
Whilst a source has claimed that Pernice has decided to step away from the hit show to pursue other career goals and TV opportunities, neither Pernice nor the BBC have confirmed nor denied it - but the broadcaster reportedly asked the star to apologise after reviewing the footage.
Since launching her case against Pernice, Abbington has stayed relatively quiet, however, last week the star rubbished the reports that Pernice asked the BBC to record their rehearsals and claimed it was her that made the request.
She told the Daily Mail: "I asked for them to be recorded, it was me. Giovanni is nasty. He was awful to a few of us, a group of us. You don’t understand how awful this all is.
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Abbington is said to be one of four making a claim against the Italian star
GETTY
"Giovanni’s fans have started trolling me now. I have had to come off social media and I’m getting death threats."
The BBC released a rare statement addressing the ongoing drama and said: "It is a longstanding position that the BBC does not comment on specific matters related to individuals.
"Nor ordinarily, would we comment on whether we are reviewing any individual complaints. Recently, we have seen a number of media reports about a high-profile show. We would urge people not to indulge in speculation."