New Strictly crisis as show is branded ‘toxic and cruel’ by staff who claim they were grilled on their ‘sex lives’
STRICTLY Come Dancing is in the midst of a fresh crisis after backstage staff branded the series "toxic and cruel" and alleged they were grilled on their "sex lives."
The extraordinary new claims come on the week the results of a probe into Giovanni Pernice, 33 - who quit the BBC show earlier this year - are expected to be made public.
He is currently under investigation by the BBC over misconduct after complaints were filed by several of his former celebrity dance partners - allegations he strongly denies.
Yet while Strictly Come Dancing bosses were set to release the 2024 celebrity line-up early - to steer conversation away from the scandal - it might not prove an effective enough technique.
According to , production workers at the hit BBC One series - which will celebrate its 20th anniversary this year - have complained "talented co-workers were treated with cruelty."
Another added that the workplace environment on the show eight years ago was "tense, toxic, uncomfortable."
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One then told the publication how they had been subjected to "sexualised comments" including queries about their sex life.
A statement from BBC Studios to The Sun in response to the claims read: "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.
"The show is a fast-paced live TV production environment that has attracted hundreds of people in the industry to work on who have had a positive experience, so we do not recognise the claims relating to a negative workplace culture - or that there are flaws in our whistleblowing process.
"In 2022, we announced the introduction of our industry-leading initiative The Pledge on all our productions, including Strictly, which proactively encourages anyone on our sets to raise concerns of inappropriate behaviour via a number of avenues, including anonymously to Navex Global, an external whistleblowing service independent of the BBC and BBC Studios.
"Details are widely available for this provider across the BBC Group to all staff and freelance colleagues and we are sorry if any former crew members experienced difficulties raising their concerns.”
Addressing the whistleblowing process specifically they added: "There is one whistleblowing service across the BBC Group which is independent and run by a third party that’s accessible to everyone – staff and freelance colleagues alike.
"Everyone is given the details of the Film and TV Charity support line, not for whistleblowing, but for the purposes of additional resource and support."
It comes as the same investigation into pro Giovanni also saw his fellow Italian countryman Graziano Di Prima axed after allegations of "physical incidents" towards show partner Zara McDermott, 27.
He was fired by the BBC following claims he hit, spat at and kicked at his former celebrity partner.
Strictly's Full Scandal So Far
Strictly Come Dancing's scandal has been growing over the past few months, with several major players speaking out about what went on. Here are the key moments of what's happened so far
16th May: Giovanni Pernice sensationally quits Strictly Come Dancing after nine years on the show.
17th May: Giovanni becomes the centre of an official investigation after three former partners – believed to be Amanda Abbington, Laura Whitmore and Ranvir Singh – make complaints to the BBC.
16th June: Giovanni releases an official statement vowing to clear his name and denies any wrongdoing.
8th July: Strictly confirms Aljaz Skorjanec will return to the series, replacing Giovanni, after initially quitting the show two years ago.
10th July: Amanda Abbington launches fresh legal proceedings to get the rehearsal footage from her time with Giovanni, after allegedly he refused to release the videos.
13th July: Graziano Di Prima is axed from Strictly for "gross misconduct" after footage of his treatment of Zara McDermott is brought to the attention of the BBC.
Graziano quickly broke his silence, apologising for his behaviour in a statement and saying he "deeply regrets it", adding his "intense passion and determination to win might have affected his training regime."
15th July: Strictly bosses implement new duty of care protocols, including having a chaperone present throughout all rehearsals.
16th July: Zara McDermott speaks out publicly for first time. She states while the production team were "amazing to work with", she found the rehearsal room "completely different", confirming there's footage of "certain situations".
19th July: Anton Du Beke is put under the spotlight for his "1970s attitude" and treatment of female celeb stars, particularly after allegedly referring to 2009 partner Laila Rouass as a "p***" after getting a spray tan.
21st July: Paralympian Will Bayley, who has limb condition arthrogryposis, revealed he was encouraged to leap from a table during a dance routine, despite fears. The stunt caused an injury that forced him to withdraw from the show.
22nd July: MasterChef's Gregg Wallace admits he broke down in tears and got a nasty stress rash on his face during his time on Strictly in 2014.
22nd July: Despite ongoing issues, the Strictly professional cast begin rehearsals for this year's series.
23rd July: Celebrity agent Melanie Blake claims she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed pro dancer while backstage on the show, and claims she witnessed ageism, rudeness and a rough treatment to the point of injury.
23rd July: Strictly is forced to beef up security after 'an intruder scales the wall of the rehearsal studio'.
23rd July: BBC boss Tim Davie breaks his silence on the ongoing allegations against Strictly, saying he is 'deeply sorry', adding: "Hundreds of people, be they pros, contestants or crew have been part of it and had a brilliant experience.
"At the same time if someone thinks there was something wrong or they want to talk about their experience then of course we want them to raise that with us. Be in no doubt we will take it seriously, listen and deal with it as appropriate."
24th July: Strictly 2023 star Krishnan Guru-Murthy holds a bombshell interview with Amanda Abbington on Channel 4 news, where she claims she was bullied, with some of the 'humilation being of a sexual nature'.
27th July: Laura Whitmore releases a statement regarding her Strictly experience, saying "I thought my experience was specific to me but I’ve since learned I was wrong".
She adds she is not part of the official complaint, but has come forward to support Amanda with the BBC, alongside others.
28th July: Laila Rouass speaks out against the accusations regarding Anton Du Beke, saying she "never felt pressured" by him and "personally insisted on six to seven hours training a day".
Zara then broke her silence with a lengthy comment on the alleged "incidents."
Graziano is now said to have been placed "under medical supervision" and is "checked on hourly" after upping sticks to his native Italy.
Meanwhile, we reported how Giovanni was spotted flashing a thumbs up in London as he awaits the result of the probe.
The BBC star fist-bumped one fan before giving a thumbs up to another, then entered the huge wooden doors.
This week, his 2023 show partner Amanda Abbington, 50, told the Lorraine show she believed he "hated" her.
She also insisted she flagged concerns about his alleged attitude three days in to the series in one of a series of bombshell claims.
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During a hard-hitting Channel 4 interview on Wednesday night with former co-star and news anchor Krishnan-Guru Murthy, she broke down in tears over the alleged behaviour which she says caused her to suffer PTSD.
During the telly discussion, she also told how some of her alleged abuse was "sexual" in nature.