Amanda Abbington 'quizzed' after fresh Strictly Come Dancing scandal 'evidence'
Amanda Abbington has reportedly been questioned for the second time by BBC bosses after alleged 'fresh' evidence has come to light amidst her complaint against Giovanni Pernice
Strictly Come Dancing star Amanda Abbington is said to have been questioned by BBC bosses.
The Sherlock actress initially complained about the alleged behaviour she experienced from Giovanni Pernice, who denies all allegations made against him. But new reports claim that she was grilled by bosses via a video call, with two former Metropolitan Police officers joining the call.
Reports suggest that the group discussed "new evidence" which has apparently come to light in recent weeks. A source claims that the BBC are "taking this extremely seriously." It was expected that the results of the BBC's investigation would have been published almost a week ago – but plans were halted in light of the scandal surrounding disgraced former BBC News anchor, Huw Edwards.
READ MORE: Police visit Amanda Abbington as they investigate 'death threat'
Speaking to The Sun, a source claims that evidence includes "sexual comments" made by Giovanni – which he has strongly denied. A source told the outlet: "Giovanni maintains he’s done nothing wrong, and Amanda insists everything she has told the BBC is true. So whatever decision the BBC comes to, it is unlikely to be the end of the matter."
It comes after sources close to Amanda claimed that she believes the investigation and its results will be brushed under the carpet by bosses. They told us: "They didn't want two catastrophes in one week." Speaking on condition of anonymity, the friend said of the probe: "They delayed it because of Edwards. We can't imagine they'll do anything apart from carry on sitting on it and try to bury the investigation."
A BBC source said: "The Strictly report and the Huw Edwards case are entirely unrelated." Bosses behind the BBC show recently revealed that staffers on the show will now sit in on all rehearsals so celebrities won't be alone with their professional partners following the allegations. A spokesperson for the BBC said: "Our processes are kept under constant review. We will not be commenting on individuals."
Strictly bosses have also demanded all pro dancers complete anti-bullying training ahead of the new series. Amanda told how she was left with PTSD after her stint. And Laura Whitmore, who also danced with Pernice, said she and six others had spoken to the BBC about Amanda's claims.
Amanda is said to have requested footage of the duo's 'tense' training sessions, leading to a misconduct investigation. The results of the investigation are expected to be revealed as Giovanni's camp is confident that he will be cleared.
The actress claims there are 50 hours of footage "being blocked" by bosses on the programme. She previously told Channel 4 News: "You know, 50 hours is a lot of footage, and a lot of time spent in a room that was toxic. So in the first week, I raised my concerns to the producers. Giovanni said that he asked for the cameras, he didn't ask for the cameras, I know that he didn't ask for the cameras, because the producers came to me and said, 'We're going to put in cameras so we can view the footage at the end of the week and make an assessment and see what's going on'."
Meanwhile, Laura Whitmore recently confirmed that she raised concerns about Giovanni and things she experienced during her stint, admitting they were "wrong". She told The Irish Times : "The stuff I'm not going to talk to you about now because it's under review, that's all coming out now, the stuff I tried to speak about eight years ago."
The Mirror has approached Giovanni Pernice's spokesperson for comment.
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