FOR 20 years, Strictly Come Dancing has brought the sparkle to Saturday nights and become one of the most successful shows on British telly.
But beyond the glittery dresses and dazzling footwork lies a trail of backstage drama and explosive rows.
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Over the last few weeks, the BBC show has come under fire amid allegations against two of its most notable dancers – Giovanni Pernice and Graziano Di Prima.
It all kicked off when Amanda Abbington, 50, who was partnered with Giovanni, 33, dramatically quit the iconic show during last year’s series.
Although she cited personal reasons for her exit at the time, rumours began to surface that it was due to rows with Giovanni. Later, she claimed she was suffering from PTSD over her ordeal.
In June Giovanni – who denied that he exhibited any “abusive or threatening behaviour” – was axed from the show.
But this was not the end of the show’s woes.
Last week, Graziano, 30, was sacked over claims he kicked and spat on Zara McDermott, his partner from last year and he admitted his “intense passion and determination to win might have affected my training regime“.
Zara, 27, released a statement saying she experienced things in the training rooms that she finds “incredibly distressing” to watch back.
The former Love Island star said she “wrestled with the fear of opening up” as she was “scared about public backlash“.
The BBC now says a chaperone will be present at all rehearsals moving forward.
In light of Giovanni and Graziano’s exits, we look at others whose departures were equally as shocking.
Ageism row
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In 2009, Arlene Phillips, then 65, was savagely dumped from the show in favour of Alesha Dixon, who won as a contestant in the previous season.
To make matters worse, Arlene, now 81, said she only found out she had been sacked while listening to the radio.
It was later revealed that her agent had died the day before she heard the news. Reflecting on her dismissal, she said: “I no longer had a place on Strictly, but no agent, no one, to deal with it. It was a really awful moment. I loved Strictly.
“It was so unexpected. There was no warning, no discussion. Nothing. There were never any conversations.”
Arlene’s firing incensed the public with many saying it was fueled by ageism, as Alesha was 30 at the time. Fans even threatened to boycott the show if Arlene was not reinstated.
Their demands fell on deaf ears. Arlene later said: “There was a big campaign to get me back but they have made their decision. The BBC will do what the BBC do.
“Suddenly, you are dropped and all the big fish have swum away from you.”
Earlier this year, Arlene said that although she had moved on from the incident, she had not forgiven the BBC for dropping her.
‘Dark days’
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Robin Windsor, who sadly passed away earlier this year, was one of the show’s most popular professional dancers. He was on the show between 2010 and 2013.
After an operation following a back injury, he claimed that bosses did not ask him to return to the show.
He said: “Leaving Strictly wasn’t my choice. I had a horrible back operation and they decided that they didn’t want to ask me back the next year.
“It was probably for health and safety reasons, in case something happened, but I was physically fit.”
He also opened up about suffering dark days after he was let go, saying losing the job was “probably the worst thing that could have ever happened to me because it took away what I loved the most.
“I loved being on Strictly more than anybody who was there… once that was taken away from me, I went into quite a steady decline.
“Not really understanding what was going on, I found that I was sad.
“And, I know we all have our dark days, but my dark days turned into dark weeks and I wouldn’t get out of bed. I didn’t really understand why I was feeling like that or how to get out of that state.”
Tragically Robin sunk into a spiral of depression and addiction and died at the age of 44, in February.
‘Not part of the vision’
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Brendan Cole was always one of the most polarising professional dancers on the show and was known for clashes with head judges Len Goodman and Shirley Ballas.
An alleged spat with Shirley was said to be “the final nail in the coffin” and he was axed from the show, after 15 seasons, in 2018.
According to reports, Shirley had nabbed the head judge role after Brendan had applied for it, adding fuel to the flames.
It was also alleged that he had ignored protocol and asked for a dance with Queen Camilla, during a festive special filmed at Buckingham Palace, which infuriated his bosses. Brendan has denied this claim.
New Zealand native Brendan, 48, was shocked by the sacking.
In a tearful interview on ITV’s Lorraine, after the announcement, he said: “I’m a little bit in shock. I’m quite emotional, a bit raw about it.
“I’ve always known this day would come… I’m sure I’ll never know the ins and outs. I’m a very strong character within the show, I have my strong views.”
But he added: “It’s their decision, the powers that be within the BBC. They’ll have a vision of the show and I’m not part of the vision, that’s okay.
“I would have preferred to have made the decision myself, but maybe I would never have made it because I love being on the show.”
Giovanni Pernice Strictly scandal timeline
October 2023: Amanda abruptly withdraws from Strictly having already missed one live show. Her departure is announced in a vague BBC statement that ‘wishes her the best’.
Giovanni posts a short message on social media addressing the exit, which read: “Amanda… I am so sad we can’t continue but I am proud of what we achieved and I am sending you so much love.”
Amanda then shares her own farewell statement on Instagram thanking co-stars but failing to mention Gio.
Giovanni’s dad Piero insists there were no signs of a fall out and the pairing could have gone all the way. He praised his son as kind and polite.
November 2023: Giovanni is reportedly gutted by the situation and is considering his Strictly future as questions are raised about his conduct.
January 2024: Amanda’s PTSD diagnosis comes to light and she demands CCTV from rehearsals to prove that Giovanni’s training methods weren’t acceptable.
The BBC issues a statement defending its duty of care to contestants, insisting it takes any claims of wrongdoing very seriously.
The Corporation stands by its man after emergency meeting
March 2024: Giovanni publicly states he has no intention of leaving Strictly in a TV interview with close pal Anton du Beke.
Ranvir Singh and Laura Whitmore enter the picture. Allegedly the two celebs, who were both previously partnered with Giovanni on Strictly, didn’t feel the BBC took their issues with his methods seriously enough.
The pair have a closed meeting with Amanda where tears are said to be shed.
May 2024: We reveal Giovanni is leaving the programme after having talks with show bosses
He leaves the country with girlfriend Molly Brown on holiday
The BBC launches an internal investigation after three complainants instruct lawyers. A source describes it as a “nightmare situation”.
‘Don’t believe the Beeb’
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Like Brendan, James Jordan, 46, was one of the biggest personalities on the show and went toe to toe with some of the judges on numerous occasions.
He left in 2013, amid reports that the BBC had offered him a reduced role on the show, without a celebrity partner.
At the time, the BBC said: “James Jordan was offered a role still. It wasn’t to be partnered with a celebrity, but it was to be involved in specials such as Children In Need, that sort of thing. But he declined that. He was offered a reduced role on the show.”
Jordan, however, took to Twitter to tell his followers: “Do not believe everything the BBC have written in their statement.”
This week, he was forced to release a defiant statement after clips of him training former partner Georgina Bouzova, and appearing to call her “fat”, resurfaced on TikTok.
‘Open war’
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In 2015, James’ wife Ola Jordan, 41, the longest-serving female professional dancer at the time, sensationally quit the show while it was still on air.
Insiders claimed her decision was due to rows with bosses. She angered the BBC after telling the Sun the show was fixed and judges intentionally “over-marked and under-marked” performances.
A source at the time said: “Her claims the show was rigged disgusted the producers given they felt they had turned her into a household name.
“It became open war between Ola and Strictly, and as of today they have decided she is not doing any more group dances and will never work for the Corporation again in any capacity.”
Judge Craig Revel Horwood also slammed her for taking provocative snaps for a Christmas calendar. It started a war of words between Craig and Ola’s husband, James.
Brokenhearted
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When Strictly Come Dancing premiered in 2004, Brendan Cole and fellow professional dancer Camilla Dallerup were engaged.
But their relationship crumbled when he was paired with newscaster Natasha Kaplinsky on the first series.
Brendan and Natasha faced rumours that they were having an affair and, while both denied the allegations, it spelt the end of his romance with Camilla.
In an interview with The Mirror in 2015, she said: “To this day I have no idea whether it was her fame and celebrity that swept him away or if he really did feel a strong connection with her.
“I’m guessing it was probably a bit of both. It felt as if the fact that we’d just got engaged meant nothing to either of them.”
Camilla, 50, who said she felt “humiliated” when Brendan kissed Natasha on the lips in one of the shows, added: “What was really hurtful was not just that Brendan appeared to have forgotten he was engaged, the entire nation seems to have forgotten he was engaged.
“He was everything that mattered to me. My family, my career – everything I’d built towards. I felt like, what do I have left?”
Camilla continued to work on the show for until 2008, when she quit after winning the Glitter Ball trophy with actor Tom Chambers. She has since retrained as a life coach.
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Rumoured Strictly 2024 line-up so far…
Chris McCausland – Comedian, 47
GK Barry – YouTube star, 24
Dave Fishwick – Businessman and TV star, 53
Martin Roberts – TV presenter, 60
Danny Cipriani – Rugby ace, 36
Roman Kemp – TV and radio presenter, 31
Hannah Waddingham – Actress, 49
Helen Worth – Actress, 73