Giovanni Pernice Makes Brutal Strictly Admission After Amanda Abbington Fallout
Giovanni Pernice has claimed that the famous “Strictly family” does not really exist as he reflected on rivalry behind the scenes and the fallout with former celebrity partner Amanda Abbington.
The professional dancer left Strictly Come Dancing following his controversial 2023 partnership with Amanda, who later made complaints about his behaviour during rehearsals.
Her allegations prompted an investigation by the BBC, while Giovanni has repeatedly disputed the way some of the claims against him have been presented.
Now, speaking following the release of his memoir Gio: Taking the Lead, Giovanni has opened up about his experience on the programme and suggested the atmosphere among the professional dancers was far more competitive than viewers might assume.
“I don’t find that the ‘Strictly family’ exists because we’re all there for the same reason — it’s a competition and everybody wants to win,” he told Heat.
Giovanni Opens Up About Rivalry Behind Strictly
Giovanni argued that every professional dancer wants to achieve success and ultimately lift the Glitterball trophy.
“The other pros all want to be successful. We all want to be the best and we all want to win the Glitterball,” he said.
He suggested that tension could naturally emerge whenever one dancer became more successful than another.
“When somebody becomes more successful than someone else, it’s normal that they get on their nerves, it’s a rivalry,” Giovanni added.
“You will have good moments and bad moments, even though they like to say it’s a family, that’s not true.”
Despite his comments about rivalry among the professional cast, Giovanni said he remains in contact with judges Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, Motsi Mabuse and Craig Revel Horwood.
He said their loyalty had meant a great deal to him during the difficult period following his departure from the BBC programme.
Amanda Disputes Giovanni’s Version of Events
Giovanni’s new book also revisits his partnership with Amanda and the controversy that followed.
The dancer has said he believed much of their relationship during rehearsals involved friendly banter.
Amanda, however, has strongly disputed his account and previously said the experience led to her being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Responding to claims made in his memoir, she said Giovanni was “grossly mischaracterising what happened to suit his own narrative”.
Amanda added that she had no interest in continuing a public dispute and wanted to focus on moving forward.
She also pointed to the BBC investigation and subsequent compensation she received.
Giovanni has separately claimed that the stress surrounding the dispute had a serious impact on his own health, writing in his memoir that he developed an inflammation of the heart.
He has previously spoken about how badly the controversy affected his mental wellbeing.
Those health claims are Giovanni’s own account of what he experienced during the period.
BBC Investigation Examined Rehearsal Conduct
The BBC investigation did not uphold the most serious allegations made against Giovanni, but it did uphold some complaints about his conduct.
According to the findings reported at the time, some of the language he used towards Amanda could be considered “belittling”.
Investigators also agreed that some of his feedback had been overly negative and noted the use of profanity during rehearsals.
The report additionally identified two instances involving inappropriate sexual banter in the workplace.
However, those exchanges were described as jokes that had been made and received as such between the pair.
The BBC later issued an apology to Amanda.
Giovanni and Amanda Continue to Give Different Accounts
One of the most disputed parts of Giovanni’s memoir concerns his claim that Amanda made a Nazi salute during one rehearsal.
Giovanni said he believed their banter had reached a level where offensive gestures and language were exchanged without either party initially treating them as formal complaints.
Amanda has rejected the broader way Giovanni has characterised their relationship.
Giovanni also reportedly provided investigators with a 28-minute recording of a conversation between the pair in which Amanda described herself as a “nightmare” and joked that she would have thrown herself out of a window if she had been in his position.
The existence of that recording has formed part of Giovanni’s argument about how he understood their working relationship at the time.
Amanda’s position remains that the experience was far more serious than Giovanni’s description suggests.
She later received a five-figure out-of-court settlement from BBC Studios as well as a contribution towards her legal fees, according to reports.
The settlement was reportedly intended to bring the dispute to an end without a lengthy legal battle.
As Giovanni continues promoting his memoir, his latest comments show that the fallout remains one of the defining chapters of his time on Strictly.
But his criticism now extends beyond that controversy.
After years as one of the programme’s best-known professional dancers, Giovanni says the idea of a close-knit “Strictly family” does not reflect his own experience.
Instead, he describes a competitive environment in which friendships, ambition and rivalry exist side by side — particularly when every professional is chasing the same Glitterball trophy.
