BBC in 'meltdown' over Amanda Abbington's claims as Giovanni Pernice says 'it's war'
Amanda Abbington appeared in two television interviews this week to shed further light on her allegations against Giovanni Pernice
The BBC are reportedly in a 'meltdown' over the claims Amanda Abbington made about her time on Strictly Come Dancing.
Sherlock star Amanda took part in the last series of the BBC dance competition and was partnered up with Italian dancer Giovanni Pernice. She left after several weeks for 'medical reasons', but later claimed she was diagnosed with mild PTSD over his 'militant' style of training.
She even appeared in two television interviews this week to shed further light on her allegations against Giovanni. During her Channel 4 interview, Amanda accused the Sicilian-born professional of 'sexual bullying' publicly for the first time. She also claimed there was '50 hours of blocked footage' from her training sessions.
Giovani has vehemently denied all claims against him and is said to be determined to clear his name, with his camp saying they have 'bombshell' evidence that could 'prove Amanda is a liar'. It has been reported that BBC bosses are 'literally in meltdown' over what to do with the situation.
They are reportedly 'incandescent' with anger that she made 'sexual bullying' claims but didn't raise the complaints during the investigation. As reported by MailOnline, sources claimed bosses are convinced that the actress wants a big pay-off and that they suspect "she will never leave the situation to 'just be'".
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BBC chief Tim Davie is also reportedly "concerned" about how the situation will unfold. A friend of Giovanni said he is "so cross" and can't figure out why she would "come out and say these things".
They told the publication: "He and his team are adamant that there is something concrete which will prove that Amanda is telling lies. He can't wait for the truth to come out, it will be a huge relief for him. Giovanni is not going let this go. It is basically war now. He will clear his name with all the evidence he has."
Giovanni's spokesman denied Amanda's claims that the '50 hours of footage' was blocked. When she sat down for an interview with news journalist Krishnan-Guru Murthy, who also appeared on the 2023 series of Strictly, Amanda cried on camera several times as she opened up about her experiences in the training room.
Guru-Murthy asked: "I heard, not from you, from somebody else, about an instance of, I suppose you’d call it humiliating behaviour of a sexual nature, is that right?" An emotional Amanda answered: "Yeah. I mean, you know, one of the many things.” Amanda said she couldn't go into full details about what happened as it was under investigation.
The Mirror have approached the BBC and Amanda's representatives for comment.
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