Giovanni Pernice 'called a c***' by Amanda Abbington in 'dark' Strictly training

Giovanni Pernice was branded a "c***" by Amanda Abbington behind the scenes of Strictly, he has shared in a brand new interview.

The Sicilian pro has claimed that Amanda told production staff she was comfortable with him swearing and that she fired back her own stream of profanities too. The pair had originally gelled during the "speed date" stage of the 2023 show and had both asked BBC bosses if they could be partnered.

However, Giovanni had no idea what was about to unfold when their wishes were granted. In a bombshell tell-all interview, he revealed that, until she complained, he'd thought their "very rude banter" was part of a mutual joke.

"Amanda was a laugh, we were making each other laugh. She would say very bad things, like the c-word," he claimed to Mail Online. "In actual fact, the production staff came to us and said, 'We have noticed that you call each other that word, is it ok?'"

He claimed she responded: "Oh yeah it's fine, I call him that! It's absolutely fine, I started it." Giovanni elaborated: "Those were her words, and I was like, 'Yes guys, we are fine, we are joking like this.' She's the person who would start the joke. She would tell a dark joke.

"That was the banter we had from the beginning, very rude banter."

His claims appear to be supported by an early video uploaded to Instagram by Amanda herself, in which the Sherlock actress spoke of how she enjoyed their rude jokes.

She told fans of their rehearsal sessions: "We have to be careful, because we swear a lot, me and Giovanni. We are really bad swearers. We make each other laugh with our swearing."

The swearing was one of the six claims that the BBC upheld after their probe into her allegations, but a further 11 were dismissed.

She also made allegations of a "sexual nature", which left a furious Giovanni wanting to punch the TV.

He has vehemently denied claims that he made a sexual gesture and says that the BBC did not uphold the complaint due to insufficient evidence of it taking place.

"Of course, I was worried it could destroy my career," he exclaimed.

"It seemed like the only point was to destroy me."