Giovanni Pernice’s name has been tarnished lately following the Strictly Come Dancing star’s reported feud with his partner from last year’s series, Amanda Abbington.
The actress, 52, decided to pull out of the series five weeks in following rumours of a clash with Pernice, 33, which has escalated in the months following after she supposedly sought legal help with the issue.
Soon after her exit, reports came that the Sherlock star had demanded footage from her rehearsals with the Italian dancer following claims she left the series with PTSD.
Earlier this week, the issue was escalated as two more of Pernice’s former Strictly partners joined forces with Abbington when they reportedly met to discuss their experiences.
Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh are said to have reached out to each other on social media and gathered last week, with “tears being shed” over their “difficult experiences”.
Good Morning Britain presenter Singh, 46, had complained about Pernice on the 2020 show, while Whitmore’s experience with him in 2016 left her “crying every day”.
Reports suggest Amanda has teamed up with two of Giovanni's former Strictly partners
BBC/ITV
However, it’s now been claimed the trio have deemed the choreographer “untouchable” with the BBC throwing their support behind him.
A source claimed: “They are very unhappy with the way the BBC are handling this.”
Speaking to the Daily Mail, they continued: “It's one thing saying they are standing by him, but they feel as if Giovanni is being promoted and pushed centre stage in a bid to make them go away and keep quiet. It's a kick in the teeth.
“One of the reasons they wanted to meet up was to try and work on a way forward because they have no intention of just backing down and letting this just fade away.”
Pernice recently deemed Abbington 'a great talent'
ITV
The insider went on to say the women had been “impacted in different ways” by their experiences with Pernice.
“But right now there's a feeling that Gio is pretty much untouchable - especially given he is so close to Anton [Du Beke] who thinks the world of him and can't believe the stuff he's been hearing claimed about his mate,” they concluded.
The remarks come as the BBC has been promoting Pernice’s new show with former Strictly pro-turned-judge, Du Beke.
Anton and Giovanni’s Adventures in Spain is currently on screens, and the duo have taken part in interviews together, where Pernice is sometimes questioned about the controversies.
On Tuesday, Pernice labelled Abbingoton "a great talent" while discussing the ongoing allegations. Speaking to Lorraine Kelly about his perfectionism and drive to win, he responded: “It’s not just about the winning.
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Abbington and Pernice's feud has been rumoured since they were both on Strictly Come Dancing
ITV
"It’s a shame because, as I’ve said in the past, it was a shame. With Amanda, we could have gone all the way to the final, a great talent.”
He continued: “But again, you’re there to put this in perspective of being the best they can, and Amanda as I said was a great, great talent, great dancer.”
Strictly pro-turned-judge Anton Du Beke chimed: “I thought you were marvellous. It’s really interesting as you start to watch this from a judge's perspective.
“When you start to watch it at the beginning, sometimes people start and you go, ‘This is rather good’. And sometimes it goes the other way.”
GB News has approached the BBC and Pernice's representatives for a comment.
