Amanda Abbington breaks cover after branding Giovanni Pernice 'gaslighter' on chirpy outing

Actress Amanda Abbington was all smiles at London's West End after she defiantly hit back at former Strictly Come Dancing partner Giovanni Pernice

Amanda Abbington put on a brave face in her first appearance since her former Strictly Come Dancing Dance partner Giovanni Pernice spoke out about her.

The Sherlock actress, 50, was all smiles as she attended the press night for Jamie Allan’s Amaze production in London's West End. Amanda beamed as she was pictured at the event, as she wore a sleek black dress with a unique shoulder cut-out.

The former Strictly star slicked her dark locks off her face and into a sleek bun as she allowed her glamorous makeup to take centre stage.

Amanda smiled from ear-to-ear at the event which came just days after her former Strictly professional partner Giovanni, 34, didn't hold back on the Lorraine show when he discussed the actress' "concerning" allegations for the first time since the results of the investigation by the BBC were published.

While the broadcaster apologised to Amanda over some of her complaints after she accused Giovanni of bullying her on Strictly, the Sicilian was cleared of the most serious claims made by the Sherlock star.

Referencing the allegations, dressed in a sharp navy suit, the dancer told guest host, Christine Lampard, he was baffled why the mum-of-two complained about him because their relationship was "perfect".

However, Amanda, who quit Strictly last year, citing medical reasons, quickly responded with her team stating: "Mr Pernice’s claim that 'everything in the rehearsal room worked perfectly' is false and delusional, and underlines the toxic culture Ms Abbington endured on Strictly Come Dancing."

The statement, which was given to The Sun continued: "The BBC’s own investigation concluded that Mr Pernice was in breach of multiple BBC Policies, including repeated breaches of the Anti-Bullying and Harassment Policy. Mr Pernice was spoken to by the BBC on several occasions about his misconduct - but his behaviour only continued.

"At no time did Ms Abbington regard his verbal abuse or inappropriate behaviour as banter. This is precisely the kind of gaslighting behaviour which victims of bullying and harassment often have to endure: it’s these people Ms Abbington will continue to speak up for.

"Ms Abbington remains concerned about the way the inquiry into her complaint was handled by the BBC, and the leaking of the investigation Report to the press, and will be meeting with the Corporation in due course to raise these in more detail."

Talking about why he decided to speak out now, Giovanni told the Lorraine show: "It's the right time to do so", adding that during the investigation both he and Amanda were asked to maintain confidentiality and professionalism.

Praising the actress, he continued: "When you have somebody in your hands, like Amanda, she was brilliant and unbelievable at dancing. I’m upset because we could have made it all the way to the final. My job is to take everything out of my partner. It’s in the public domain, the fact I’m a strict teacher. If you want to achieve greatness, I think this is the right way to do.”

Denying ever clashing with the Sherlock star in the rehearsal room, despite Amanda's claims he made offensive comments towards her, he continued: "The investigation didn’t find me a bully," he said. "Bully is a big word, there’s a big difference between bullying and caring about what you do. All I had was 'Giovanni you’re an amazing teacher, Giovanni you’re great'." Concluding, he said: "At that time everything was perfect, me and Amanda Abbington never had an argument."

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