Amanda Abbington was one of the first stars to be announced for the 21st British series of Strictly Come Dancing last summer. The actress withdrew from the show at the beginning of the competition. Until now, she has not said what the reasons were for her departure from the program. It turns out that there was supposedly violence behind the scenes.
British ‘Dancing with the Stars’ in Trouble? Actress Accuses Dancer of Violence
Amanda Abbington gave long interviews to ITV and Channel 4 in recent days. She told what happened during the preparations for “Dancing with the Stars”, produced for the BBC. It is one of the most popular entertainment programs on British television at the moment, and the actress known from the series “Sherlock” has dreamed of participating in the show for years. She got into the 21st series of the program, but problems began after just a few rehearsals in the gym. Abbington claims that her partner, dancer Giovanni Pernice, used verbal abuse and mobbing towards her, which she informed the station about. Ultimately, she decided to withdraw from the competition herself at an early stage of the program’s broadcast – the reason given at the time was unspecified health problems.
I knew it would be hard work. But I was ready for it. I wanted to learn new dances, I wanted to enjoy it. It’s a BBC programme in the Saturday night prime time slot, of course it’s hard work. But I’ve always worked hard. And I’ve spent a lot of my life in rehearsals, so I know what it’s like and what it should look like. But I didn’t expect this. It was completely different – the shaken actress told ITV. – In the rehearsal room, I don’t care where you come from, whether you act, dance or sing. It’s your duty to take care of the other person, to bring understanding, kindness, a certain tenderness into the room. That didn’t happen to me, so I said out loud that it wasn’t right.
She reported the matter to the producers as soon as she felt something was wrong. On the third day of rehearsals, she sent messages to the producer saying that her dance partner hated her and she didn’t know why. In an interview with Channel 4, she mentioned that the BBC had installed cameras in the room to record Abbington’s rehearsals with Pernice.
Every Friday after rehearsals, for the next five weeks, I would get a message from the producer: we have just watched the recording, we are in shock, we are very sorry – she said, adding that each such meeting ended with an apology from the dancer, who on Monday behaved normally, and by Thursday his attitude returned to a disturbing norm that had nothing to do with normal behaviour during rehearsals.
The BBC never gave her access to the footage it had for use in any legal proceedings. Abbington is in contact with other women who have experienced similar behaviour from Pernice but have been afraid to speak out about it.
Amanda Abbington Talks PTSD After ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Rehearsals
Abbington openly admitted that the backstage bullying caused her to develop post-traumatic stress. “I can’t talk about the specifics of what happened [ze względu na wciąż toczące się w BBC postępowanie wewnętrzne – przyp. red.]. But it immediately makes me feel uneasy. It shouldn’t be like that. It’s not the kind of reaction you should expect from a BBC programme on a Saturday night. It shouldn’t happen after any BBC programme. I’m still scared to go out on my own, I feel like everyone’s looking at me. When I talk about it I start crying, I can’t cope with the emotions, I’m shaking. It was awful,” Abbington said.
She was not the only person to suffer this type of violence behind the scenes of the show. British media, in connection with the Amanda Abbington case, mention Zara McDermott, whose professional dance partner – Graziano Di Prima – kicked her during rehearsals for the same edition of the show, trying to force her to perform certain figures on the dance floor. The BBC is also conducting an internal investigation into McDermott.
Dancer Giovanni Pernice rejects all accusations made against him by Amanda Abbington. Neither he nor Graziano Di Prima will be seen by the British on “Dancing with the Stars” again.
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
