Giovanni Pernice’s past clashes with Strictly partners as he ‘quits’ BBC show-Stella Akinwumi and Ruth Lawes-Entertainment – Metro

Giovanni Pernice has reportedly quit Strictly Come Dancing (Picture: Getty)

Strictly Come Dancing pro Giovanni Pernice has quit the BBC show to have a ‘fresh start’, it has been claimed.

The 33-year-old’s reported departure comes after reports of clashes with celebrity dance partners, including Amanda Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh.

However, a source close to Giovanni previously denied the allegations and told The Sun he found them ‘deeply unfair and offensive.’

On Thursday, it was claimed Giovanni had quit the show after an internal memo about this year’s Strictly professional dancers line-ups was circulated without his name, according to the publication.

A source said he wants to ‘focus on other TV projects’ and feels he has ‘achieved all he can’ on Strictly.

Giovanni reportedly feels he has achieved everything he can on Strictly (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

The BBC also refused to confirm or deny the reports and told Metro.co.uk:  ‘The professional dancers for 2024 will be announced in due course.’

They added: ‘He remains adamant he’s done nothing wrong other than being a hard taskmaster, but knows his style of training isn’t to everyone’s liking — especially in this day and age.’

Giovanni has had quite the emotional rollercoaster during his time on Strictly – so let’s look back at his controversial show partnerships.

Amanda Abbington

Amanda reportedly sought legal advice after her time on Strictly (Picture: PA)

Amanda, 51, was said to be seeking legal advice in reports earlier this year after she quit Strictly after one month.

While she has not said much over her exit, citing ‘personal reasons’ at the time, it was later claimed that she had requested video footage of her rehearsals.

Amanda also said she was diagnosed with mild PTSD after Strictly and received death threats.

She told The Sun On Sunday:’“I was diagnosed with mild PTSD after Strictly for several reasons and I told a few people about that, in the utmost confidence, among other things that were happening in my life at the time both professionally and personally.

‘I’m very sorry that people felt the need to send me death threats, threaten my children and bring up my past, healthy relationship with an ex-partner as an ­indicator of my current mental health. I wish those people well.’

Following her exit, Amanda ‘snubbed’ Giovanni from an Instagram statement reflecting on her stint on the show.

In March, Giovanni addressed the Mr Selfridge actress’s early departure, stating that it was a ‘shame’ and that he felt they could have gone ‘all the way.

Laura Whitmore

Laura reportedly cried daily during rehearsals with Giovanni (Picture: PA)

Former Love Island host Laura, 39, appeared on the BBC competition series in 2016.

She reportedly cried daily when in training and did not feel comfortable dancing with Italian dancer Giovanni.

In 2020 she revealed show bosses ‘forced her to spend’ extra time with Giovanni when she just ‘wanted to dance.’

Speaking on Jamie Laing and Francis Boulle’s Private Parts podcast, she said: ‘What I didn’t like was being removed from everybody and having to spend 12 hours a day with this one person.

‘It did not become about the dancing. I just wanted to dance. I did not want to play the game of doing red carpets with your dance partner and stuff like that, which a lot of people thought you should be doing. I did not want to do that.’

Faye Tozer

It was claimed Faye clashed with Giovanni backstage on It Takes Two (Picture: Jonathan Hordle/Shutterstock)

In 2018, it was alleged Giovanni left his partner Steps star Faye, 48, in tears after a backstage clash on It Takes Two.

A source said the pair, who reached the finals and were crowned joint runners-up, often locked horns as Faye found the way he spoke to her ‘abrasive.’

They told The Sun Faye broke down on It Takes Two after struggling with Giovanni’s ‘intense’ training style and his ‘fiercely competitive’ nature.

Ranvir Singh

Ranvir reportedly met up with Laura and Amanda to discuss their experience with Giovanni (Picture: PA)

Good Morning Britain presenter Ranvir competed on Strictly in 2020, landing in fifth place.

It was claimed earlier this year she was among the celebrities who’d had a negative experience working with Giovanni.

She also reportedly met up with Amanda and Laura for an ’emotional summit’ to ‘compare notes’ about their experiences with him. The trio were reportedly considering lodging a ‘formal’ complaint.

A source told the MailOnline: ‘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.

‘All three have been impacted in different ways by what happened and they’ve agreed to speak again about how best they can get something done about it because they are genuinely worried about what went on and the fact someone else could end up experiencing what they went through.

‘But right now there’s a feeling that Gio is pretty much untouchable – especially given he is so close to Anton who thinks the world of him and can’t believe the stuff he’s been hearing claimed about his mate.’ 

Richie Anderson

Radio 2 presenter Richie was in an all-male pairing with the Italian dancer in 2022.

However, naysayers implied that there was bad blood between the pair, with the professional denying anything of the sort while making a recent appearance on Strictly’s sister show It Takes Two.

During a conversation with Metro.co.uk, Richie poured even more cold water on the reports, with the radio personality emphasising how much his pro has ‘looked after’ him in the past few weeks.

‘It’s ridiculous, it’s not even a thing,’ he stated.

‘He has looked after me so much over the last couple of weeks. He’s like a big brother, which is weird, because I’m older.’

Georgia May Foote

Giovanni and Georgiadated after making it to the final (Picture: Getty)

Former Coronation Street actress Georgia and Giovanni made it all the way to the final in 2015 and started dating straight after.

After less than a year, Georgia, 32, confirmed their split on social media.

‘It is with great sadness we have decided to split up,’ she told her followers. ‘There is nobody else involved.

‘Although it was not an easy decision to make, sometimes you realise that it is better to be friends and this is one of those times.’

Georgia added: ‘We both have very busy work schedules for the rest of the year so we are both going to focus on our upcoming work projects and we wish each other well for the future.’

After the split it was claimed that there was tension between Georgia and good friend Laura (Whitmore) after she was partnered up with him in the same year.

However, Laura shut down the claims with a light-hearted post.

‘So when did we have this explosive row @georgiafoote,’ Laura joked as she wished Georgia luck for her West End role in Breakfast At Tiffany’s.

Metro.co.uk previously contacted Ranvir, Amanda, Faye and Giovanni’s reps for comment.

Strictly Come Dancing is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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