Giovanni Pernice opened up about Amanda Abbington's allegations (Image: ITV)
Giovanni Pernice has spoken out for the first time since being cleared of 11 out of the 17 allegations made by Strictly partner Amanda Abbington.
In a bombshell tell-all interview, he confessed that he "wanted to punch the TV" after hearing of Amanda's Channel 4 chat with Krishnan Guru-Murthy and feared her "untrue" comments would "destroy" his career. The trigger point for him was learning that she'd made allegations of a "sexual nature".
"I wanted to punch the television. I didn't watch it, I couldn't watch the interview because I was thinking, 'Why would you talk on live TV when we've both been asked not to talk about it?'" he exclaimed. "My Sicilian blood would rise up and I'd think, 'This isn't the truth' – but I had to remain silent."
He added: "Of course, I was worried it could destroy my career – the people that come to my shows are kids and women. I was painted as a person I am not. It seemed like the only point was to destroy me."
Giovanni also added in his recent Mail Online interview that he vehemently denies the suggestion that he made a "sexual gesture" towards her during rehearsals. The BBC probe has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to prove that the gesture took place.
Amanda Abbington did an interview with Channel 4 (Image: CHANNEL 4)
In one newspaper interview, Amanda claimed he told her: "You're a 51-year-old menopausal woman but I'd still f*** you."
However, Giovanni countered: "I had to ask my agent what the menopause means!"
One of the complaints that the BBC upheld was that he'd used "belittling" language towards her, including swearing.
However, Giovanni says that both of them swore at each other as part of consensual inside jokes - and an unearthed video published by Amanda after the first week of rehearsals supports that version of events.
Amanda Abbington and Giovanni Pernice together in 2023 (Image: BBC)
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Meanwhile, he confirmed that he'd initially thought he and Amanda were so good together that they could make the final - and theyd been paired with each other by mutual choice.
However, it wasn't to be - and when things turned nasty, a concerned Giovanni says he requested chaperones for them.
He also started to record the footage from rehearsals on his phone in a reaction to the allegations that had started to emerge.
Finally, he clarified that he wasn't angry with Strictly for asking him to leave the show while the probe was underway, but that he'd have some "questions" for bosses when he speaks to them.