Strictly's Giovanni Pernice wins Italian version of show and vows to marry partner Bianca Guaccero

• Showbiz
• Strictly Come Dancing

Strictly Come Dancing pro Giovanni Pernice has won the Italian version of the show with his actress partner Bianca Guaccero and vowed to marry her

Former Strictly pro Giovanni Pernice has lifted the trophy on the Italian version of Strictly Come Dancing and hinted at a possible wedding with his co-star Bianca Guaccero.

The 34-year-old dancer scooped the top prize on Ballando Con Le Stelle after dazzling the judges on Saturday night, making quite the splash in his debut season following his tumultuous departure from BBC's Strictly amid a probe into allegations of bullying directed at his 2023 partner Amanda Abbington.

Giovanni vigorously refuted these claims.

On being probed about whether he intended to propose to Bianca, the Italian stallion cheekily said last night: "If we win the show, I'll seriously think about it."

The pair took home the trophy(Image: Maurizio D'Avanzo/MDPhoto/ipa-agency.net/REX/Shutterstock)

Fans were thrilled as Giovanni confirmed his romance with the 43-year-old actress and songstress just last month, with the duo seemingly hitting it off as the weeks went by. Before taking to the stage for their final performance, Giovanni gushed: "Bianca is my priority. She has been my priority from the beginning. She is still my priority today and will be until the end of the show and beyond."

Bianca was moved, responding with: "Being someone's priority is something new for me. I have always been the one taking care of others.", reports the Mirror.

They celebrated with a kiss(Image: Maurizio D'Avanzo/MDPhoto/ipa-agency.net/REX/Shutterstock)

She continued with heartfelt emotion: "It's an amazing feeling. It's something I'm discovering at the age of forty-three. Having someone next to me who is proud of me and is happy for my happiness is something new to me. This has never happened to me in my life."

The lovebirds have already had the big family meet-ups, visiting each other's nearest and dearest in the glam London and beautiful Italy. In a December 21 interview, Bianca said: "I had a heavy stone on my heart, I had difficulty believing in true love. When I met Giovanni I felt at home and I was in London with him and then 24 hours with my parents. I wanted to introduce him to the country and the people I love."

The investigation cleared him of some claims(Image: ITV)

This news follows an internal BBC investigation which cleared Giovanni of almost all abuse allegations made by actress Amanda Abbington in September. After a six-month investigation, bosses ruled Giovanni was not physically abusive. However, Amanda's complaints about verbal bullying and harassment were upheld.

Six out of a total of 16 allegations against Pernice, six were upheld and the report claims his language could be "belittling".

Despite the controversy, Giovanni made a reutrn to the BBC show last night for a special episode marking Strictly's 20th anniversary.