Laura Whitmore hits out at ‘inappropriate behaviour’ on Strictly while partnered with Giovanni Pernice
Laura Whitmore, the TV presenter, has alleged she was subjected to “inappropriate behaviour” during her stint on Strictly Come Dancing.
The former Love Island host, 39, was partnered with professional dancer Giovanni Pernice in 2016, and was the seventh celebrity eliminated.
Whitmore, who battled through an ankle injury during the early weeks of the BBC One show, claims she “raised concerns” at the time.
Pernice, 33, has previously rejected “threatening or abusive behaviour” allegations made by Amanda Abbington, the Sherlock actress who was partnered with him in 2023 before he exited the show.
Whitmore wrote in an Instagram story on Saturday: “I was trying not to comment on recent press speculation until the BBC review is complete but feel there is a lot of misinformation in the press and I want to help and show support by setting the record straight.
“I was asked to speak to the BBC along with six people that I know of (who deserve anonymity as they don’t want to be dragged through the press), about inappropriate behaviour they experienced similar to mine with the same individual.
“I initially raised concerns back in 2016. I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong.
“The aim of this is to show a pattern of behaviour that I believe needs to stop. My evidence is to support other people’s experience.
“It’s a shame it takes this for someone to be heard. I am not looking for anything just an acceptance that what happened to me in the rehearsal rooms during my time on BBC Strictly was wrong and that it won’t happen to anyone else again.
“Because I have not made an official complaint, and am providing evidence of my experience to support the investigation, not all the communication will be passed on to all parties involved.”
She added that she was trying to “set the record straight” by speaking out.
‘Victim-blaming’
“Victim-blaming must stop or we will never get better,” Whitmore said. “I’ve tried to speak up in the correct way. I know the BBC and all outlets continue to do their best to be better, but for that to happen we must speak up.”
Spokespeople for Pernice have repeatedly insisted that the star is confident his name will be cleared.
A source has now told The Sun that the probe could conclude within the next week.
Speaking to the newspaper, the anonymous source said: “Day by day the situation is changing, and right now the future of Strictly is hanging by a thread.
“Internal meetings are happening on an almost daily basis, and BBC execs are living in fear of a ‘smoking gun’ moment – something that irreversibly undermines and damages the entire brand, and brings Strictly crashing down.
“They are doing all they can to detoxify the show – new measures and protocol are in place to safeguard – and they hope to formally conclude the ongoing probe within the next week.”
It is not known whether the findings of the investigation will be made public.
On Saturday, it was also reported that production staff who formerly worked on Strictly Come Dancing had complained of a toxic work culture and accused the BBC of failing to take their complaints seriously.
According to The Observer, one former staff member alleged they had been subjected to sexist comments - which included questions about their sex life.
A spokesman for BBC Studios told the newspaper: “The welfare of our crews working on each series of Strictly is always of paramount importance to us. We act speedily when any concerns are raised, and we have thorough, effective and longstanding processes to manage them.” They added: “We do not recognise the claims relating to a negative workplace culture.”
Meanwhile, Abbington’s parents told the Mail that their daughter was “no snowflake”.
Speaking to the newspaper, her father John, 77, said: “As soon as I wake up in the mornings and when I go to bed at night I am worrying about it.
“It’s the after effects I worry about too. Will she be able to carry on with her career?’’
A spokesman for Pernice previously said: “We are co-operating fully with the BBC’s review process.
“All parties have been asked to respect this process and to not speak to the media before it concludes.
“We will continue to respect the integrity of the investigation and believe it is the right forum for all the evidence to be reviewed.
“As part of the evidence-led review, the BBC has shared the allegations they have been able to substantiate with us.
“They do not resemble Amanda’s latest allegations, given to Channel 4, in any shape or form.
“Giovanni refutes any claim of threatening or abusive behaviour, and, having provided the BBC with his evidence, is confident that the review will prove this.
“We would urge people to wait for the review’s conclusion and not to pay heed to these very serious and defamatory allegations that have no evidence in support of them.”
A BBC spokesman said: “Anyone involved in a complaint has a right to confidentiality and fair process and therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further on individuals. However, when issues are raised with us we always take them extremely seriously and have appropriate processes in place to manage this. As we have said before, we would urge people not to indulge in speculation.
“More generally, the BBC and BBC Studios takes duty of care extremely seriously. Our processes on Strictly Come Dancing are updated every year, they are kept under constant review and last week we announced additional steps to further strengthen welfare and support on the show.”
A representative for Amanda Abbington was approached for comment.
