Former ‘Strictly’ stars divided over Giovanni Pernice’s exit amid ‘bullying’ claims

Ex-Strictly Come Dancing professionals recently reflected on Giovanni Pernice’s scandal following the “bullying” probe.

Ever since the Italian dancer was held accountable for Amanda Abbington’s PTSD, his life has turned upside down.

Sharing her stance on Pernice’s exit from the BBC show, Laura Whitmore extended her support towards Amanda, alleging she was treated the same way.

However, other professional dancers, including Brendan Cole and Ian Waite have been firm in their decision to stand with Giovanni.

According to them, it’s crucial to be harsh and brutal in dance as it is considered a part and parcel of the said industry.

Reflecting on his experience on the British dancing competition, Brendan recalled: “Oh, there were many. I won’t name names, but it’s well documented. I had several partners I could have done without.”

Speaking exclusively to the Weekend Magazine, he continued: “If you get a partner you don’t get on with it can implode so quickly because of the emotion, and the heightened tension.

“The only difference [with Amanda Abbington] is that she was the first to leave. But a couple of mine wanted to leave before the end. I wanted to leave before the end a few times too. It’s the nature of the beast to get through it, have a handshake at the end and hopefully you’ll never have to speak to each other again.”

Meanwhile, Ian White shared that brutal criticism in training is part of the industry and BBC have tried their best to show the better side.

He explained: “Me and Zoe Ball went through a rollercoaster. The highs were really high but the lows were low. In those days they showed the tears and the frustrations but nowadays they don’t so much, it’s more about the positive stuff.”