Entertainment
Amanda Abbington ‘calls police over petrifying death threats’ after being spotted in tears-Sabrina Barr-Entertainment – Metro
‘The police have taken the messages seriously,’ a source claimed.
‘The police have taken the messages seriously,’ a source claimed (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Rex Features/Shutterstock)
Amanda Abbington has called the police after being left ‘petrified’ by death threats, it’s been reported.
The former Strictly Come Dancing star is said to have become ‘worried’ about doing everyday tasks like going grocery shopping, and even leaving her house.
She was recently spotted looking tearful while out with a friend, as they chatted outside of a private members’ club.
The messages that the actress received allegedly came from ‘supporters’ of Giovanni Pernice, who was her professional dance partner on the BBC series last year.
After Amanda, 50, withdrew from the competition prematurely, allegations emerged regarding the behaviour of Giovanni, 33, during training sessions for the show.
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The Mr Selfridge star called the Italian dancer ‘nasty’ and ‘awful’.
Amanda branded her former Strictly partner Giovanni ‘nasty’ (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/Rex/Shutterstock)
Amanda withdrew early from the 2023 series of Strictly (Picture: BBC/Guy Levy)
Giovanni denied allegations that had been made against him in a statement, saying: ‘I reject any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour, and I look forward to clearing my name.’
According to a new report, Amanda has been in contact with the police over the death threats that she’s received.
‘Amanda has been left petrified and feeling very vulnerable in public,’ a source told The Sun.
‘She has been worried about leaving the house to do simple errands like walking the dog or picking up groceries.’
The insider continued: ‘At one point she was struggling to field the hundreds of messages from Giovanni supporters saying nasty things and threatening her safety.
‘It was awful to cope with. The sheer volume was horrendous and the content was unspeakable and incredibly threatening. The police have taken the messages seriously.’
The actress’ Instagram profile recently disappeared from the platform (Picture: Karwai Tang/WireImage)
As the professional line-up for Strictly’s 2024 series was announced – with Giovanni not included in the cast – it was spotted that Amanda had seemingly deleted her Instagram account.
She had previously told Daily Mail+ of her training sessions with Giovanni: ‘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. Giovanni’s fans have started trolling me now. I have had to come off social media and I’m getting death threats.’
It was reported that Amanda had met with the dancer’s former celebrity Strictly partners Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh to ‘compare notes’ on their experiences with him.
Giovanni won’t be in the Strictly pro line-up for 2024 (Picture: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)
In his initial statement, which he posted on May 18 this year, Giovanni wrote: ‘To my dear fans, You will be as surprised as I am that allegations have been made about my dance teaching methods in the media this week.
‘Of course, I reject any suggestion of abusive or threatening behaviour, and I look forward to clearing my name.
‘Those who have followed my journey on Strictly Come Dancing over the last decade will know that I am passionate and competitive. No-one is more ambitious for my dance partners than me.
‘I have always striven to help them be the very best dancers they can be. This has always come from a place of love and wanting to win – for me and my dance partners.
‘Thank you all once again for your continued love and support! Giovanni.’
In a new message posted a week ago, he added: ‘I am cooperating fully with the ongoing BBC investigation, which will determine the truth. As requested, I have stayed silent, but I am looking forward to the conclusion of the investigation and ultimately clearing my name and establishing the truth.’
Metro.co.uk has contacted representatives of Amanda Abbington for comment.
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